Anima
by English-illiterate
Summary: A tiny handful of animals are able to pass on their traits to humans. However, the method was lost. Also, doing this was risky because if the animal died, the human would die as well. Naruto meets a tiger cub that can do just that. AU
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: I'm writing this out of boredom. I need some reprieve from my other story so… Yeah. I'm not very confident about how this story will be received, so please point out my mistakes. If this story isn't that well received, I'll delete it.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, which is a relief because I have enough problems with my school work. I don't need hundreds of fans mobbing me and complaining about the pairings, people who died, etc.**

Chapter 1: Animal

The stars winked playfully in the dark blanket that enveloped the world. A breeze picked up and swept through the clearing, rustling the tops of the trees. Crickets chirped in the grass as the moon took its place in the sky, casting light on the world. A young blond lay in the deserted clearing, just gazing up at the stars. His name was Uzumaki Naruto. The boy sighed in contentment, feeling at ease in the midst of nature. He was going to enter the academy tomorrow and wanted to forget about all the hate filled glares and all the villagers ignoring him.

Suddenly, a rustle rang out in the clearing, causing the blond to jerk into a sitting position and scooting into the forest to hide. The blond waited with bated breath as the rustling got louder, indicating that something was approaching. As the seconds dragged on, Naruto's imagination went wild, his fantasizing becoming more out of hand until something finally burst out of the clearing. The blond heaved a sigh of relief and slight disappointment as all his fantasies were shattered. Naruto re-entered the clearing and approached the small animal, studying its white coat which was interrupted only by the tell-tale black lines alternating down its body. He marvelled at the soulful blue orbs not unlike his own as he stared at the tiny paws placed firmly on the ground.

'Cat?' was all that ran through Naruto's juvenile mind as he chanced touching the small animal. The tiger cub growled in response, circling the blond, inching closer with each revolution. Naruto backed away, only for the tiger cub to pounce on him, gunning for the blond's neck. Naruto cried out in surprise and flailed wildly, trying in vain to get the tiger cub off. The tiger's claws sank into the blond's flesh as he ran into the bushes, stumbling as he tripped on a log and ended up crashing head over heels into the brush. "Ow…" the blond groaned, propping himself up with his elbow and rubbed the back of his head in an attempt to ease the pain. The young blond glanced around after untangling himself from the bush and found the tiger cub prone on the floor, whimpering in pain as blood gushed from a wound on its neck, staining its pristine white fur a stunning scarlet.

Drops of water fell from the sky, drawing Naruto's attention towards the clouds. "Rain?" Naruto mumbled before pushing through the foliage and back into the clearing. The young blond turned his head upwards and blinked as droplets of rain impinged his eyes, the sky truly overcast. The rain came down a little harder, finally becoming a sheet of rain cascading down from the heavens. Naruto burst back into the brush and was about to run home when the tiger cub's stark white fur caught his eye again, the owner of the pelt whimpering pathetically on the ground as it pressed its tiny body on the floor as far as it would go. Naruto poked the tiny animal, eliciting another pained whimper from the feline. "Mr. Cat, if you don't get home soon you'll catch a cold," Naruto said to the cub. The tiger cub didn't provide a response, falling silent as its eyes drooped closed. "Mr. Cat?" Naruto tried again.

Not receiving an answer, the young blond decided to show the animal to his Jiji, cradling the cub in his arms, struggling a little due to the weight of the young tiger. Naruto ran through the rain, the liquid hammering a watery tattoo into the sidewalks as he made his way towards the Hokage Tower. Sarutobi was going through paperwork and was about to wrap up and go home before he heard the sounds of arguing outside. 'Must be Naruto, but what could he want at this hour?' the Sandaime walked around his desk and yanked open the door to his office.

The sight that greeted him was that of Naruto, dripping wet with a bundle in his arms, arguing with his secretary. "Naruto? Come on in," the Sandaime called to the blond, his secretary shooting the boy a dirty look. His secretary was one of the few whom held no hatred for the boy. The reason she was so irked was that Naruto was dripping wet and leaving mud stains all over the floor. That, as well as the fact that he'd caught her in a paintball trap that day and coloured her so vividly, a rainbow would have looked away in shame. After the blond had closed the door behind him, the Sandaime asked, "So, what brings you here so late? And why are you so wet?"

"I went to the forest and found this. Then it started the raining," Naruto told his grandfather figure, placing the tiger cub on the desk.

"Why'd you bring that here? That thing is dangerous," the Sandaime told the young blond.

"It's bleeding, so I brought it here," Naruto replied simply.

"Put it back, Naruto," the Sandaime sighed.

"But it's hurt. Can't you heal it?" Naruto stared at his grandfather figure with large blue eyes.

"Alright," Sarutobi caved and inspected the feline. He produced a roll of bandages and disinfected the cub's wound before bandaging the cub's neck.

"It's just a flesh wound. Nothing that won't heal after a while. Just send it back to where you found it and-" Sarutobi was cut off by Naruto.

"Thanks Jiji," Naruto called as he exited the room. Sarutobi just sighed tiredly, shaking his head at the young blond's antics.

Naruto carried the tiger cub home, sneaking the animal in past the landlord. The young blond opened the door to his apartment before setting the cub on the floor and locking the door behind him. Naruto tiptoed into the shower, not wanting to wake the tiger cub up. The blond peeled his drenched clothes off of himself and tossed them onto the floor before stepping into the bath, running the shower and enjoying the feeling of warmth each drop of water brought. After his shower, he emerged from the bathroom wearing his pyjamas, steam permeating the air in the bathroom. The young blond staggered into his bedroom and flopped into bed, leaving the tiger cub in the living room.

Throughout all the events, the presence of a symbol on his neck going unnoticed. It was an intricate design depicting a paw and was situated right over the wound he'd received from the tiger cub during the scuffle. Strangely, the wound had appeared on the tiger as well and while the wound on the cub spurted blood, his had not bled at all.

'Why's it so hot?' Naruto thought, turning onto his side under the covers. Eventually the young blond kicked the covers off in a desperate bid to cool himself. An argument from the next apartment over assaulted his ears with perfect clarity, causing a groan to escape the young blond as he squashed the pillow over his ears. Naruto threw the pillow across the room as he flipped onto his stomach, his eyes cracking open. The young blond gave up on sleep and padded into the kitchen, bringing a carton of milk and gulping down the contents. He tossed the empty carton into the bin and retrieved his pillow from across the room when he got back to his bed. He collapsed back onto his bed, sighing in relief when the argument died down.

His relief did not last long because pain lanced up his legs causing him to clutch both appendages until it died down into a dull ache. A headache pounded at the back of his head, threatening to split his head in two as he whimpered in pain. Pain struck him in random parts of his body throughout the night, causing the young blond to bite his pillow to stop from crying out as the temperature fluctuated, going from hot to cold and back in an instant, pain blooming in his eyes. Finally, he drifted into the sweet embrace of sleep.

Sunlight assaulted his sensitive eyes and pierced them even through his eyelids. The young blond slowly opened his eyes and looked around wearily, bracing himself in case more pain struck. Nothing happened. 'When did I fall asleep?' Naruto wondered as he rolled out of bed. He padded into the bathroom and looked into the mirror, chuckling when he saw the state that his hair was in. The most noticeable bed head features were the two tufts of hair sticking up at the top of his head and two jaw length bangs framing his face that had not been there before. Just then, the tiger cub entered the bathroom, yawning as it did so, revealing its impressive canines. "Good morning Mr. Cat," Naruto laughed.

"Firstly, I'm a tiger, not a cat. Secondly, I'd rather be sleeping now," the cub yawned again for emphasis.

"Whoa! It talked!" Naruto exclaimed, backing away from the tiger.

"I'm not an 'it', I'm a 'he'. Please, get it right," the cub said indignantly.

"Sorry. Do you have a name, or can I call you Shiro?" Naruto asked tentatively.

"Shiro's nice. I'll keep that name," the tiger cub said dismissively.

"Okay, Shiro. I have to go to the academy, so what are you going to do during that time?" Naruto asked, grabbing a toothbrush and applying tooth paste to it.

"Could I follow you to this 'academy'?" Shiro asked, watching Naruto brush his teeth.

"What?" Naruto shouted, spitting globules of foam out in the process.

"You heard me. So can I?" Shiro licked his paw in an effort to clean it.

"I guess…" Naruto trailed off before washing his face. Naruto dried his face and looked back up at the mirror, throwing the towel back onto the rack. He left the bathroom, Shiro trailing behind him as he headed for the living room, grabbing a carton of milk from the refrigerator.

"So, what do you eat anyway, Shiro?" Naruto inquired, flinging the empty carton into the bin.

"You don't have to worry about what I eat," Shiro answered, jumping onto the windowsill.

"Shiro?" Naruto chanced, only for the tiger to jump out the window and snag a bird between his teeth, landing gracefully on the tiles of the roof. "Wow! That's so cool, Shiro!" Naruto shouted. Shiro pinned the bird down and snapped its neck, before devouring it savagely, blood flying across the roof as Shiro consumed his meal. Naruto turned away, grabbing a slice of bread before joining Shiro on the roof, a bird carcass assaulting his vision. "I'm done," Shiro declared.

"I should clear this," Naruto sighed before gingerly picking up the entrails, re-entering his house, and tossing them in the bin. "Ew…" Naruto complained, washing his hands at the sink, his slice of bread clamped firmly in his mouth. Naruto poked his head out the window saying, "Shiro, next time you hunt, please don't do it on the roof," Naruto said.

"Sorry. I was just so hungry, I couldn't help myself," Shiro said sheepishly. The blond changed into a black shirt and was about to pull on an orange jumpsuit when Shiro growled in irritation, complaining that it was too vibrant. Naruto sighed and decided to forgo the jumpsuit, pulling on a pair of black pants, unhappy with the ensemble. The blond grumbled before exiting his apartment through the window after the tiger cub. Shiro ran across the rooftop and jumped, crossing the space between the two roofs and landing on the next roof over before stopping, "Where is this 'academy'?" Naruto sighed before leaping off the roof and landing on street level with catlike grace, stunning the few pedestrians below.

"Come down, Shiro. I can't roof-hop like you, you know," Naruto called to the cub. Shiro landed a few metres away, Naruto trotting towards the tiger cub. The villagers stared, startled by the feline, before their looks soured into ones of disgust as they turned away and ignored the blond. By the time the two reached the academy, they had already established that only Naruto could understand Shiro, if the villagers looking at the blond like he'd gone insane didn't clue them in on that fact. Naruto entered the classroom and immediately covered his ears in pain as the noise generated from the ruckus crashed over him. The blond slid into a seat at the back of the classroom and slowly adapted the noise.

"Oh my God! That's so cute! Is it yours?" a voice squealed from beside him. Naruto looked up and nodded numbly as a blonde girl swept Shiro into her arms and proceeded to hug the life out of the tiger.

"Ino! Don't do that! It's a tiger! Get away from it before it attacks you!" a pink haired girl warned the newly identified Ino.

"Shiro's harmless, right?" Naruto gave the tiger cub a look that said 'don't attack her, she's not a threat'. Shiro nodded and purred, burrowing into Ino's embrace.

"Kawaii!" Ino squealed again, turning to her friend and saying, "See, he's harmless."

"If you say so. Sorry, we didn't introduce ourselves. My name's Sakura and she's Ino," Sakura said, pointing to her blonde friend.

"Naruto," the blond grinned. Just then, a boy wearing a hooded jacket, a small white dog peeking out of it, walked over. His eyes were feral, two red triangles that resembled fangs adorned each cheek.

"You reek of fox _and_ cat. How on earth did you manage that? Name's Kiba by the way," the feral looking boy introduced himself.

"Cat? That's probably from Shiro, but why fox?" Naruto mused, only for Kiba to shrug.

"Okay everyone. Please sit down," Naruto's ears perked up as he heard this and turned to the front of the class where he saw a brown haired teacher, who was mostly being ignored.

"Sit down and shut up!" the man exploded, grabbing everyone's attention. "Okay from now on, I'll be your teacher. My name is Umino Iruka. I'm supposed to have an assistant, but he's not here today, so for today I'll be teaching alone. We'll be studying history for this period," Iruka announced, producing a book and chalk as he started the lesson.

**A/N: This story was, as I've said, done mostly out of boredom, but please take the time to review and point out my mistakes. It would help greatly in my writing so I thank you in advance. Naruto is really young then and you have to remember that he doesn't have parents to teach him life lessons and etcetera, as well as everyone ignoring him, so I assume he doesn't know what a tiger is.**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hit a wall with my other story, Second Life, so I'll be continuing this story until I can find away around said wall. Now, updates for this story won't be coming too often, because this is just to pass the time while I think up a way Minato can defeat Neji without revealing himself and so on. I will still delete this story if the response isn't good, but seeing as there are only two chapters, I won't be passing judgement so quickly. Also, I was thinking about animal habitats and realised 'Don't tigers come from jungles?' but I don't intend to change it.**

**Disclaimer: Not that owning Naruto isn't my dream, it's just that my drawings are so crappy, an elephant could do a better job. I'm serious. Verdict: I don't own Naruto.**

Chapter 2: Effect

"Okay, you're all dismissed for lunch break. Please gather outside later for practical classes," Iruka instructed. The students all filed outside, chatting about the class that had just ended.

"Hey, you remember me? Kiba? Wanna go for lunch together?" the feral looking boy approached Naruto.

"But you're a dog. You said that I smell like foxes and cats, so shouldn't you hate me?" Naruto cocked his head to the side, trying desperately to figure out why he was being so nice.

"I'm not a dog! I'm human. Human! My clan just works closely with dogs and we can communicate with canines, but we are not dogs. I did say that you smell of foxes and cats, but that doesn't mean that I hate you," Kiba grinned, showing off his larger-than-normal canines.

"You really don't mind Shiro and me?" Naruto asked tentatively.

Kiba shook his head and said, "As long as that thing doesn't eat me, I don't mind... much." Naruto smiled and followed his new friend out the door, Shiro trailing after the two.

"So, you're from the Inuzuka clan. What's his name?" Naruto pointed to the little white dog in Kiba's jacket.

"His name's Akamaru," Kiba said, looking down at the puppy. Naruto moved to touch Akamaru, but the canine growled and backed further into Kiba's jacket.

"Naruto, Akamaru's a dog. You might not want to touch him," Kiba warned.

"Right. Cats and dogs don't mix," Naruto nodded in comprehension.

"Foxes and dogs don't mix either," Kiba pointed out as they sat down beneath a tree. Shiro stretched and yawned lazily before curling up beside Naruto and napping. Naruto produced a bento and proceeded to scarf his food down, rice grains flying everywhere. "Whoa! Slow down!" Kiba said, brushing rice grains off his jacket.

"Sorry," Naruto apologised, having finished his lunch.

"You're even messier than me and that's saying something!" Kiba said, chuckling.

"What are they screaming about?" Naruto pointed to a group of girls clustered around the bench a stone's throw away.

"Screaming? Probably Sasuke. 'Oh Sasuke, I wanna marry you', 'Oh Sasuke, I want your spit', 'Oh Sasuke, I wanna suck your butt'. Tch. I don't see what's so good about him," Kiba groused. Naruto chuckled at Kiba's performance and scratched behind Shiro's ears, eliciting a purr of satisfaction from the tiger. "Lunch's over. Let's go," Kiba said after finishing his food and feeding Akamaru. Kiba got up, Naruto following suit.

"Come on, Shiro," Naruto shook the tiger cub to rouse him. Shiro got up and yawned, showing off its canines once again, its tongue hanging out.

The academy students all assembled in the yard, Iruka shouting, "Okay! We'll be having light sparring to gauge your abilities in taijutsu, then I'll correct your styles if they're not clan styles. Then, I'll be teaching you the academy's style of taijutsu tomorrow. It's taijutsu only so even if you know any ninjutsu, you're not allowed to use them. Ninken, bugs and the like are not allowed either."

"Kiba, what's a ninken?" Naruto asked his friend, puzzled.

"It's basically a ninja dog. Like Akamaru," Kiba answered.

"Why would you use bugs in battle?" Naruto whispered the question.

"Well, the Aburame use bugs to fight and gain information, but that's all I know," Kiba whispered back.

"So, some clans can make use of animals and bugs to fight?" Naruto summarised.

"Yeah. My clan's one of them," Kiba nodded, "Looks like it's my turn."

"Kiba against Gen. Begin," Iruka said, seeing that the two were already poised in the ring, Kiba having left Akamaru with Naruto. Gen ran at Kiba, cocking a fist back. Kiba grinned fiercely before catching the fist and socking the boy in the face with a punch of his own. "Winner, Kiba," Iruka announced. Kiba smirked and walked out of the ring, towards Naruto, Akamaru and Shiro.

"Beat that!" Kiba smirked.

"I will!" Naruto boasted. Just then, a silver haired man walked up to Iruka and whispered into the man's ear before Iruka turned to the class and said, "This man's name is Mizuki. He'll be my assistant from now on. He'll be overseeing your sparring," before leaving. "Looks like it's your turn," Kiba said, pointing towards the ring.

"Sasuke against Naruto. Begin," Mizuki spat the blond's name, bitter about the fact that the boy was the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki. He had paired the boy with Sasuke on purpose, hoping that the Uchiha would beat the boy into the ground and cause as much hurt to the blond as possible. Naruto charged at the raven haired boy, determined to get a hit in. He swung his fist, only for the Uchiha to dodge it. Naruto growled in frustration and swung his other fist, only for it to be dodged as well. Sasuke suddenly dropped to the floor and swept his leg towards Naruto's legs, intent on toppling the blond. Naruto jumped upwards to avoid the sweep and away from Sasuke, his eyes flashing a rich amber colour in the sunlight. 'How did I do that?' Naruto stared at his hands in awe, only for Sasuke to launch his fist at Naruto. The blond moved his head to the side, feeling the fist whistle past his cheek before his legs were swept out from under him. Naruto slammed his hands onto the ground and twisted aside, flipping his legs upwards, barely missing Sasuke's face. His feet went over his head and planted into the ground, the upper half of his body snapping upright due to the momentum. Sasuke took the opportunity to lash out with his foot, catching the blond in the back, the latter falling face first onto the ground. Sasuke smirked down at him, drawing a growl from the blond.

"Winner, Sasuke," Mizuki announced miserably, unhappy that Naruto hadn't been severely hurt. Naruto got up, glaring murderously at the Uchiha before walking towards his friend, sour at being defeated.

"He totally pounded you without breaking a sweat!" Kiba laughed, causing Naruto to release another snarl. "Hey, I'm only saying," Kiba raised his hands in attempt to placate his friend, small laughs escaping his lips.

"How did I even do that? I mean, I've never been able to do that before," Naruto confided in his friend, staring at his hands.

"Don't ask me. I wouldn't know," Kiba shrugged nonchalantly.

"We're going to do target practice now. Everyone gather around the targets," Mizuki announced, waving towards five target boards. The two, four including Shiro and Akamaru, followed the class towards the brightly coloured target boards. There were four rings painted onto it and one bright red circle displayed prominently in the middle. "We will be throwing kunai today. Everyone will get a turn. The total is five points. You get a point when the kunai lands in the red circle. Anywhere else will not get you any points. Let's start off with Sakura," Mizuki consulted his clipboard. The pink haired girl from before walked up to the table and picked out five kunai. She then walked up to the targets and positioned herself, angling the kunai before releasing it. The kunai hit the outer ring. She slowly launched the other four one by one, managing to hit two out of five of the bull's eyes. "Good. Next, Ino," Mizuki called out. The blonde girl swiped five of the projectiles from the table and tossed them, managing to get three out of five. One more than her pink haired friend.

"Well done. Next, Shino," Mizuki said. This went on until it was Sasuke's turn. The raven haired boy confidently threw all five and hit the bull's eye for each of the five. "Excellent. Next, Kiba," Mizuki said, Sasuke retreating back into the class, the girls congratulating him for such a feat. Kiba swaggered up to the targets and smirked, releasing all five and chalking up four. Shikamaru was next, the Nara hitting two out of the five, grumbling that actually trying to get all five was too troublesome. Naruto's turn finally came, Mizuki reluctantly letting the blond try his hand at throwing kunai. The blond unleashed the kunai and managed to hit three out of the five.

"Okay. From here, the classes for the females and the males are separated. The females will be going to the fields to collect flowers for ikebana. The males will be doing the obstacle course," Mizuki announced, directing the girls over to the teacher in charge of ikebana. After the females of the group had left, Mizuki lead the remaining students towards the obstacle course which consisted mostly of ropes and wooden bits reinforced with metal here and there. "This is the obstacle course. You have to jump across the mud by using those 'stones', climb up that rope, cross the rope bridge while dodging the plastic kunai. They're not lethal, but they hurt. Then, you have to cross that rope above the mud pit and end over on that platform where you have to tie the cloth there onto the other rope and slide down. Make sure to put your feet out to avoid slamming into the tree at the end. If you fail in any of these tasks or fall off, you will end up in the mud pit below so be careful. We will be recording the amount of time you take to complete the course. Let's start with Sasuke," Mizuki said. Sasuke leapt from stone to stone, shimmied up the rope, pulled himself upwards onto the rope bridge and dodged the plastic kunai, emerging without a scratch, before clinging to the rope like a sloth and moving towards the platform where he knotted the cloth around the rope, grabbed both ends of the cloth and slid down the length of the rope, lifting his feet up to stop himself as he reached the tree before letting go of the cloth and landing perfectly on the ground.

"Incredible. He made that look easy. Unfortunately, it's harder than it looks. Next, Shino," Mizuki announced. The Aburame took a longer time than the Uchiha, though not by much. Mizuki went through the names before calling, "Next, Kiba."

Kiba grinned, stepping up and saying, "I'm going to finish this in record time." Kiba hopped across the stones, pulled himself up the rope, propped himself onto the rope bridge using his arms and ran across the rope bridge, going into a dodging frenzy before a kunai nicked his cheek just before he completed the obstacle. "Damn it!" Kiba growled before grabbing the rope and swinging his legs to cling onto it. He moved steadily towards the platform where he secured the cloth onto the rope, gripping both ends and sliding down the rope, kicking the tree and landing on the ground in a squat.

"Ha!" Kiba shouted before trotting towards Naruto.

Naruto ended up going last again, the blond looking back at all his classmates, most of whom were covered in mud or had sustained injuries from the plastic kunai. He glanced back at the obstacle course and gulped, not keen on having a mud bath. "Go! It's not too bad," Kiba pushed the blond teasingly.

"Begin!" Mizuki spat, Naruto placing one foot on a stone and getting a feel for it. His eyes flashed a brilliant gold in the sunlight as he danced easily across the stones before grabbing the rope and scrambling up it, pulling himself onto the rope bridge. The blond ran across the rope bridge, dodging and ducking as he went, getting hit in the thigh and arm by the plastic kunai as he traversed the bridge. He reached the rope and did the unexpected. He clambered onto the rope before running on it towards the platform. He landed in a crouch on the wooden extension before tossing the cloth over the rope, and, not bothering to tie the cloth, grabbed the two free ends of the cloth as he slid down the rope. He let go of the cloth, landing on the ground with catlike grace, the piece of cloth trailing from his grip as his eyes flashed a thick honey colour yet again.

The class stared on, stunned at the display, before snapping out of it and whispering among themselves, Kiba clapping him on the back and saying, "Teach me that sometime!" Mizuki scowled as he consulted his stopwatch, not believing that the demon brat could clear the obstacle course so quickly. He was hoping that the blond would fall into the mud pit in the very least.

"I'll collate the results and pin them up on the board in class. Gather back inside for an explanation on chakra," Mizuki said, his voice as sweet and false as saccharin.

"How did you run across the rope like that?" Kiba marvelled.

"I don't know. It just felt… I don't know how to describe it," Naruto picked Shiro up and the four entered the academy building. The class was dismissed after the lecture, the girls keeping their distance from the boys who were covered in mud, not wanting to be dirtied. Kiba left with Naruto, leaving the blond when he reached his house.

"Where are you going Shiro?" Naruto asked when Shiro strayed away towards the forest.

"To hunt," Shiro answered simply.

"I'll join you," Naruto called after the cub. The two disappeared into the forest together, the sun disappearing beyond the horizon.

**A/N: Well, here's the next chapter. If you're wondering how Naruto could do all that, he gained a tiger's/ cat's reflexes and balance. That's why. Please review and if's anything wrong, please point it out. Thank you.**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Frick! A real person isn't perfect. A perfect person isn't real. But who says there isn't someone out there who's perfect for you? Hmpf. - is so perfect. - doesn't make mistakes. - doesn't cry. - doesn't have moments where he can't think. - doesn't have times when he screws up. - doesn't have times when he fumbles. - doesn't have times when he falls. - doesn't have times where he shows emotions. - doesn't eat ramen. - doesn't make any mistakes. - doesn't have a time when he was a kid. - doesn't reveal anything. - doesn't have problems hurting his nakama to keep a secret even if there's another way out. - doesn't miss anything. - doesn't feel pain. - doesn't ever miss any details. Is this really how you want him to be? Just fill in the blanks with whatever name you want.**

Chapter 2: Academy, Day 2

Naruto and Shiro met up with Kiba on the way to the academy and the two walked into the classroom to find themselves amidst utter chaos. "Mendokuse," a voice grumbled from beside them. The two turned to find a brunet sprawled lazily over the desk, a fairly chubby boy sitting next to him, tearing through chip packet after chip packet. The duo ignored them and pressed on towards the front of the class, where a bunch of boys, and a few girls mixed in, were staring at the board.

"Kyaaa! Sasuke came out on top again!" a brunette squealed.

"Who's the loser who ended up taking the longest time? Taking 50 minutes for that obstacle course is pathetic," one of the boys jeered. Kiba and Naruto pushed to the front of the crowd, Shiro in Naruto's arms.

"Look, Kiba! You're one of the top 5!" Naruto jabbed at Kiba's name which was at the top of the list.

"I can't seem to find my name," Naruto went back to looking at the list.

"Um, Naruto. Take a look at this," Kiba waved Naruto to the continuation of the list which was on another sheet of paper. Kiba pointed to the last name on the list which read, 'Uzumaki Naruto'.

"What? But I'm sure I was fast enough to be put near the top of the list. That bastard of a teacher!" Naruto shouted.

"I bet he gave your timing to _Sar-su-kay_," Kiba purposely dragged each syllable to ridicule the name.

"That's not very fair to Sasuke. He got that timing with his own ability," Ino tutted.

"You weren't there, how would you know? Naruto was running on the rope! He was like a friggin tightrope walker!" Kiba retorted.

"Why do you care? It's not even yours," Ino planted her hands on her hip.

"He's my friend. Why shouldn't I?" Kiba shot back.

"Well, then there must have been a mistake. It's nothing to get so upset over," Ino said, taking on speaking with a tone a teacher would take when trying to resolve an argument.

"You're only saying that because your precious _Sasuke_ wasn't the one whose name ended up at the bottom," Naruto said.

"Look. It's just one exercise. There's no use in making a mountain out of a mole hill. It's not worth it," Ino sighed.

"I guess you're right," Naruto said, the tufts of hair sticking up on his head seemed to droop a little.

"Good," Ino smiled and went back to her seat.

"Class is going to start soon. Let's go back to our seats," Kiba suggested before leading Naruto to a desk somewhere in the middle of the class. Five minutes later, Iruka walked in, Mizuki trailing behind him. Four minutes into the lesson, boredom started to take hold of Naruto, leaving him ripping small strips of paper and balling them up in preparation of spit wads. Shiro saw this and nipped the blond's arm. Naruto yelped and dropped a wad before turning to glare daggers at Shiro, rubbing the offended appendage to ease the pain.

"Shiro! Why'd you do that?" Naruto whispered.

"Pay attention of I'll bite you again," Shiro growled.

"But it's so boring! You're not even the one who has to suffer through this. You just sleep!" Naruto shot back.

"I actually do listen, now pay attention or I'm going to bite your butt!" Shiro snapped.

"But it's so boring," Naruto whined.

"Like Aristotle said, education is bitter, but its fruits are sweet," Shiro quoted.

"Aristotle can bite me!" Naruto hissed. "Whoever he is," he added as an afterthought. Shiro slinked under the table, opened his mouth, and bit down on Naruto's leg.

"Ow!" Naruto shouted.

"Is something wrong, Naruto?" Iruka inquired.

"No, sensei," Naruto kicked blindly under the table, trying to get one of his feet to connect with Shiro's body.

"Okay, then could you tell me who this is?" Iruka asked, pointing to a picture of a man with tan skin, brown eyes and long black hair. He was wearing red plated armour and had a headband tied around his forehead with Konoha's insignia engraved onto the metal plate.

"Um…" Naruto tried stalling as he wracked his brain for an answer, only to draw a blank.

"Hashirama Senju. Shodai Hokage," Shiro said, hopping onto the desk.

"Hashirama Senju. The Shodai Hokage," Naruto repeated what Shiro had just said.

"Good. At least you're listening," Iruka turned back to the blackboard.

"See? Now pay attention," Shiro nodded his head in the direction of the board.

"Fine," Naruto grumbled. Seconds dragged on into minutes and finally, the long awaited lunch time came around. As the two neared the tree, they noticed the two from before.

"Hey, can we join you?" Kiba asked, Naruto too stoned to say anything as of yet. The two boys nodded, the duo crashing beneath the tree.

"Ugh… Numbers are spilling out of my ears," Naruto grumbled.

"You mean you actually listened to the lectures?" Kiba asked incredulously. Naruto nodded, producing a bento.

"Whoa, no wonder you're so out of it," Kiba marvelled. "Why don't you just do something else?" the chubby boy asked.

"Shiro won't let me," Naruto groused, glaring at the tiger cub.

"Who's Shiro?" the boy whose hairstyle resembled a pineapple asked, unwrapping a piece of bread.

"Him," Naruto said simply, pointing at the tiger cub.

"How can he do anything? He's a tiger. Animals can't possibly understand humans," the plump boy reasoned between fistfuls of chips.

Shiro growled.

"'On the contrary, I can' he says. Whatever contrary means," Naruto relayed, shovelling rice into his mouth.

"You can talk to it? How troublesome" the brunet said, taking a bite out of a piece of bread.

Shiro growled again.

"'I'm not an it, I'm a he' he says," Naruto relayed again, before shoving a chunk of fish in his mouth.

"Whoa! You can do the same thing as me! Only, with felines!" Kiba shouted, meat chunks spraying from his mouth. Akamaru let loose a muffled bark, a strip of bacon clamped firmly between his teeth.

"Well, my name's Shikamaru. He's Chouji," Shikamaru introduced.

"Kiba. The blondie who can do tiger-speak's Naruto," Kiba grinned. Lunch passed swimmingly. Practical lessons rolled around, with Mizuki teaching the class the basic academy taijutsu styles. When Mizuki went to teach Naruto the style, he showed the blond the wrong stances, ending with the blond tripping over his feet.

"I don't like that silver-haired teacher of yours. Something tells me that that stance isn't right," Shiro said, as Naruto took up a stance that Mizuki had shown him.

"Well, he's a sensei. He wouldn't do anything bad to me on purpose right?" Naruto reasoned.

"I don't know about that…" Shiro trailed off as Kiba approached.

"Whoa! Your stance is screwed up! Big time! Your feet are too far apart and your hands need to be like this," Kiba adjusted Naruto's stance as best he could for an academy student.

"Thanks," Naruto said.

"See? There's something not right about that teacher of yours," Shiro mumbled. Target practice found Mizuki handing Naruto a set of kunai, seeing as the ones on the table had coincidentally run out. The result was Naruto missing all but two of the targets by a long shot, and even then, none reached the bull's eye.

"It's alright. I'm sure you'll do awesome for the obstacle course again," Kiba patted his friend on the back.

"Mendokuse," Shikamaru groused. The males and females split up after target practice, the females heading back to the classroom to learn about how to properly arrange and coordinate the flowers for ikebana, the males going to the obstacle course again.

"We'll be doing the same obstacle course and see if any of you have improved in your timing. Let's start with Sasuke, seeing as he clocked the fastest timing yesterday," Mizuki announced. Sasuke completed the obstacle course flawlessly yet again, never once missing a beat. Shikamaru had gone at a snail's pace, deeming it too troublesome to clock his best time. Most of the clan heirs managed to make it out of the course without getting dunked in mud, but unfortunately for the rest, they were not as lucky. Most of them had not tied the knot loosely enough and had gotten stuck halfway through, and, having no other choice, had let go of the cloth and dropped into the mud. Others had fallen from the rope bridge, slipped on the stones, or lost their grip on the rope while moving towards the platform. Kiba had gotten through without a scratch this time, but he'd been slowed significantly.

"Damn it! Why can't I have gone faster?" Kiba shouted, disappointed by his own performance.

Naruto went last again, Kiba staring intently at his friend as amber flitted across the latter's eyes. Shikamaru started before turning to Kiba and asking, "Did you see that?"

"Yeah. What was that? Maybe it's just the light," Kiba answered.

"Mendokuse," Shikamaru drawled, filing the occurrence away for future reference.

By then, Naruto was already running across the rope, his steps sure and confident as brilliant gold played in his eyes in the sunlight. Naruto landed on the platform before realising that there weren't any more strips of cloth available. The blond gave a mental shrug thinking, 'What the heck,' and swinging himself onto the rope and running down it as well. Upon reaching the tree, he stumbled and tumbled towards the ground. Instinct kicked in, his body righting itself in an instant, ending with him landing on all fours on the ground. "I thought I was going to die!" Naruto got up and inspected himself for damage.

"Sweet! Are you secretly a cat or something?" Kiba smacked Naruto on the back so hard that the blond fell backwards into the mud.

"Oops. Sorry," Kiba grinned sheepishly scratching the back of his head, before a hand shot out of the mud and wound around his leg. "Ahhh!" Kiba shouted as the muddy appendage dragged him into the mud pit.

"Damn you, Kiba!" Naruto shouted, clambering onto land. Mud clung to his hair and coated his body like a second skin as chunks fell off. Naruto shook his body feverishly, causing globs of mud to fly off and splat across the ground.

"I'm wrapping your words up in frilly ribbons and sending them back at you," Kiba growled as he surfaced and climbed out of the pit to join Naruto, shaking mud off. Kiba cocked his fist back, Naruto mirroring the Inuzuka. They both punched each other at the same time before grinning, having made up.

"Mendokuse... 'Kiss and make up' does not involve punching," Shikamaru drawled from behind them.

"I'll collate the results and pin them up next to yesterday's results so you can compare your results. Gather back inside for the continuation of the lecture on chakra," Mizuki announced. The students filed back into the classroom, the mud stains having been cleaned out by the cleaning staff. After the lecture, Naruto and Kiba walked home together, Naruto leaving Shiro to hunt in favour of going to Ichiraku's to eat. After a hearty meal, he found himself at home, staring out the window. It was nearing 10 P.M and yet he still couldn't get to sleep. He felt a pull and his body wanted desperately to go, but his mind was telling him no. Eventually, he gave in and left through the window. He let his feet carry him as he gazed at the stars, marvelling at the tranquillity of the village at night. He soon found himself running through the forest, drowning in the feeling of wind caressing his face as it whipped through his hair. Naruto burst into a clearing and found Shiro tearing into a rabbit.

"Want to come along?" Shiro asked, getting a nod from Naruto. Naruto left the clearing, Shiro at his side as the two dashed through the forest, catching the scent of another rabbit. Not long after discovering the rabbit, Naruto's mind went blank, gold bleeding into his eyes, his canines lengthening and sharpening to resemble that of Shiro's as he stalked the rabbit, inching closer, not making a sound as he kept away from the winds to stop the rabbit from catching his scent. The blond's muscles coiled as he padded towards the rabbit, before pouncing on the rabbit and, clamping his teeth over the animal's neck, broke it with ease.

"Ew…" Naruto spat as he regained his senses, the gold in his eyes evaporating, his teeth shrinking to their normal length.

"Well, Shiro. Do you want it?" Naruto asked, holding the limp rabbit up to Shiro's line of sight, but before Shiro could say anything, a blank look crossed Naruto's visage again, and he started to tear viciously into the rabbit. Once the rabbit corpse was reduced to bits of bone, Naruto began to lick his hands to clear it of the blood and gore. The moment the blond came to his senses, he ran into the bushes and puked his guts up, the taste of the raw rabbit burned into his memory forever. "That was disgusting!" Naruto shouted, spitting on the ground in a desperate attempt to rid himself of the taste.

"Then why'd you eat it?" Shiro questioned.

"How thould I dow?" Naruto said, turning to Shiro with his tongue hanging out of his mouth. "I'm going home," Naruto declared, retracting his tongue. Shiro shrugged and returned to hunting.

**A/N: Please review. I won't pass judgement too soon, but I will delete the story if it's not well received. Will be going on holiday, so I won't be updating for about a week or so. I'm considering rewriting my other story so chapters might not come very frequently.** **In case any of you don't know, I don't intend on bashing any characters. Sakura is really not too bad and she will be nice in my story. If it puts you off, I thank you for supporting my story so far. Thank you.**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Rewriting Second Life, so I will be updating this for now.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or VOCALOID**

Chapter 4: Festival

"Hey Naruto! There's no school today because of the festival! Wanna go together?" Kiba asked his blond friend.

"No thanks," had been Naruto's short reply. Naruto had gone over to Kiba's house for the day and Tsume was worried. Naruto wasn't usually so sullen. He was usually energetic to the point that it wore even her out, and was happy 24/7. The quiet blond boy stroking Shiro couldn't possibly be Naruto. Then it struck her. The festival was the source of his discomfort, being the Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi.

"Don't worry. It won't be that bad. We'll go with you," Hana, Kiba's brother, reassured the blond. Naruto shook his head once more.

"Come on! Stop being so sullen! Today's the day of the festival! You're supposed to be happy!" Kiba smacked the blond on the back.

"Let's go get ready," Hana said, dragging a stunned Naruto up the stairs and shoving him into the bathroom.

"Bathe, or I'll never let you out," Hana smirked through the door.

"Fine!" Naruto shouted through the door. The sound of water cascading on tiles filled the room, as well as the smell of soap and shampoo.

"I'm done! Happy now?" Naruto yelled.

"Very. Here, wear this," Hana shoved a yukata through the gap in the door.

"Wear this? Are you mad? It looks so girly!" Naruto shouted in indignation.

"FYI, men can wear it too. It's not as if I'm asking you to wear a bikini! Besides, it's traditional clothes for the festival. Now stop yapping and change!" Hana yelled back. Hana leaned back on the door frame and smirked in satisfaction as she heard the sounds of cloth ruffling, albeit accompanied by grumbling.

The sound ceased and Hana called out, "Okay, you can come out now." Receiving no response, she yanked open the door and manhandled Naruto out of the bathroom. Naruto cried out and struggled, but the older ninja was far stronger, her slim form never belying the strength she had. Hana finally managed to get Naruto into the living room where Kiba and Tsume were waiting expectantly. They finally caught sight of the blond being forced down the stairs, in a plain light blue yukata with dark blue trim, held closed by a dark blue obi that was tied loosely around his waist.

"Dammit, Hana-nee! Stop pushing!" Naruto shouted up at the female Inuzuka.

"Get down from the stairs and face them first! And your obi is coming out!" Hana finally managed to get Naruto to face Kiba and Tsume, the former fussing about the blond, securing the obi correctly for him so as not to let it fall off. Naruto soon gave up and let Hana go about inspecting nearly every inch of him.

"Naruto! You… look… ridiculous!" Kiba said between gasps of laughter.

"Don't you start, Kiba. You'll be wearing one too," Hana glared at her younger brother, amusement dancing in her eyes as she watched Kiba pale.

"No!" Kiba wailed in despair and getting up before his mother forced him back.

"We'll have to do something about these," Hana declared, pointing to the two tufts of hair sticking up on the blond's head. Hana tugged experimentally on one before hastily releasing it when Naruto yelped in pain.

"I'm sorry. Are you okay?" Hana asked tentatively, her words coming out in a rush of words. Naruto nodded lightly before Hana tried again, only to find the two tufts pressed flat onto the blond's head. 'That's odd," Hana thought. At that moment, the two tufts pricked upwards again, Naruto turning to look in Tsume's direction, where Kiba was trying to creep away quietly. Tsume followed Naruto's line of sight and immediately dragged the boy back by the leg.

"You're not going anywhere, young man," were the Inuzuka matriarch's words.

"Damn you, Naruto!" Kiba shouted at the blond. Naruto playfully stuck his tongue out of his mouth as if to say, 'Oops. Sorry about that.'

"This is interesting. These two things on top of your head are like ears," Hana mumbled.

"What do you mean?" Naruto cocked his head to the side, hearing the words that had escaped Hana's mouth.

"I mean that they sort of act like… Shiro's ears, and can move independently. Or you can move them," Hana said. Naruto stared at Hana as if she were crazy before giving it a try, willing it to move. The two tufts twitched, before flattening on his head again.

"See, it moves," Hana said smugly. Naruto pinched one between his thumb and forefinger and winced, feeling cartilage compress under his fingers.

"Oh my God! It's real," Naruto tugged gently on it.

"That's not physically possible though. It seems like you have four ears, and that's impossible," Hana stared intently at the extensions. Naruto suddenly knew how a bug under a microscope felt.

"Well, enough of that. It's Kiba's turn," Hana pulled away to Naruto's relief, and dragged Kiba up the stairs.

"Naruto! Save me!" Kiba yelled. Naruto just smirked and waved playfully at him, sending him off. The thought of going to the festival came back to him again and he slumped to the floor, depressed.

"Don't worry. We'll be with you. You have nothing to fear," Tsume reassured the blond.

"Thank you," Naruto mumbled, unsure what to do as it was the first time someone other than the old man had cared for him.

"Well, I'm going to prepare now. Don't go anywhere. You'll get the yukata dirty," Tsume said, getting up.

"But it's yours. The yukata, I mean. I shouldn't be wearing it," Naruto looked up at Tsume.

"I'm lending it to you for today. Just don't get it dirty," Tsume grinned before turning and leaving the room, leaving a stunned Naruto sitting on the floor. Moments later, a groomed Kiba wearing a yukata identical to the one that was on Naruto came down the stairs, followed by Hana, clad in a dark blue kimono, pink sakura petals contrasting the dark colour was embroidered onto it. The clothing hung off most of her body, but hugged the upper half of her body snugly.

"We'll be heading out once Mom's finished changing. You're gonna love the festival! There are all sorts of games and booths where you can buy masks, candy, food, and other stuff!" Kiba said excitedly. Naruto nodded, starting to feel excited for once in a long time, only to feel nervous again.

"Well, are you three ready?" a voice rang out, its owner standing beside the stairs, her frame hugged tightly by the dark blue kimono she was wearing, branches of kerria embroidered onto fabric. The get-up showed off her curves and the obi she was wearing was slightly loose, as if teasing. The four, plus their ninken and, in Naruto's case, tiger, set off from the Inuzuka compound and threaded their way to the main district where the festival was being held. Naruto's head swivelled around, trying to take in everything at once as the sounds, sights and smells bombarded his senses.

"Hey Naruto! Kiba! Wanna get some grilled squid?" Hana shouted, pointing towards a stall. The four approached the stall and Naruto choked slightly as smoke invaded his nose and eyes.

"Here," Tsume held four sticks of grilled squid in her grasp and handed one to each of the three children, keeping one for herself. She paid the stall owner and they walked off. Naruto bit into the squid and tore a chunk off, tasting the teriyaki sauce slathered over the grilled sea creature. He chewed the chunk before giving up and swallowing it, the taste of the sweet teriyaki sauce still in his mouth.

"It's really rubbery," Naruto commented.

"It's like that," Kiba grinned, a ring of teriyaki sauce framing his mouth.

"Kiba, your mouth's a mess," Tsume tutted, tossing the bare skewer she'd been eating off of into a bin, before bending down and wiping the sauce off with a handkerchief.

"Mom! This is embarrassing! Stop it!" Kiba squirmed under Tsume's Motherly Hanky of Doom. Naruto laughed, tears coming to his eyes.

"You too, Naruto," Tsume rounded on the blond and gently mopped up the sauce. Naruto stood, stunned. No one had ever done something like that for him. He was the orphan that everyone ignored, so a mother fussing over him was something he thought he would never have. A tear made its way down his cheek, before he hastily wiped it away once Tsume pulled away to admire her handiwork.

"Once you're done, throw the sticks into the bin. Don't litter," Tsume told the two boys. Hana gobbled the last bit of squid before throwing the skewer into a nearby bin.

Naruto could only nod dumbly before Tsume grasped his and Kiba's hand and lead them into the throng saying, "Stay close to me and don't get lost." Tsume brought the two boys around the festival, trying all manners of food, getting bloated, and trying out the game booths.

"'Catch a goldfish and bring it home'," Naruto read, before asking, "Can we go try it out?" Tsume smiled down at him and agreed, steering Kiba and Hana towards the booth as well, weaving through the crowd.

"I'll go first," Kiba declared as Tsume paid the store owner. Kiba grabbed a paper scoop and immersed it in the water, waiting for a fish to swim above it. But as Kiba pulled the scoop out of the water, the 'net' part of it broke, releasing the fish. "Damn it!" Kiba shouted, receiving a slap upside the head for swearing, courtesy of Tsume.

"Well, I'll go next," Hana announced, grabbing a paper scoop and trying her hand at fishing albeit with paper scoops. The moment she pulled it out of the water, the scoop broke, spilling the goldfish back into the blue plastic tub.

"Give it a try, Naruto," Tsume coaxed, handing the blond a scoop and watching as the boy moved tentatively towards the tub. The store owner's look soured to one of distaste as he watched the blond step out from behind Tsume to stand before the tub. Naruto stared intently at the fish in the tub, his eyes flashing a rich gold colour as his hand swiped downwards into the water and producing a particularly fat gold fish. Naruto hastily lowered the scoop into the bucket provided and looked expectantly up at the man, before turning to Tsume, unsure of what to do.

"Congratulations, you caught one. I'll package it so you can bring it home," the man choked out, seeing Tsume glare at him. The man filled a clear plastic bag with water and transferred the goldfish into it, filling the bag with oxygen and tying it up before handing it to the Inuzuka matriarch.

"Here, Naruto. Good job," Tsume said, handing the blond the fish.

"Thank you, Tsume-san," Naruto thanked.

"You're welcome. Now let's go try our luck and see if we can find a seat to watch the play. I'm sure you'll like it. It's about your idol, Yondaime-sama, defeating the Kyuubi," Tsume smiled before ushering the three children to the centre of the square, where a stage and seats were set up. The four just managed to secure four seats together, Naruto watching in awe as the sun disappeared, and the play began.

A ninja, most probably a weapons specialist, had metal claws grasped in each hand, and two more strapped to his feet. The man opposite looked exactly like the late Yondaime Hokage, having cast a henge. The two waited for the cue to begin, launching into an intricate dance of blades, weapons clashing. Clear notes rang out across the square as the crowd watched, intrigued by the two locked in mock combat. The play was unlike anything that Naruto had ever seen. Instead of letting civilians act out the scenes and have the 'Yondaime' defeat the 'Kyuubi' without the beast ever putting up a fight, the 'Kyuubi' in this one attacked with mock ferocity, letting loose slashes and clawed kicks while the 'Yondaime' blocked and parried, the two occasionally letting loose jutsu, careful not to hit the spectators. It was like a real battle, albeit with the lack of injuries on both parts. Towards the end, the 'Yondaime' destroyed the 'Kyuubi' with a fire technique which called forth a large fire dragon. The dragon pounded into the 'Kyuubi', which turned upwards into the sky before bursting in a flurry of colours, having reduced the 'Kyuubi' to nothing but smoke.

Naruto watched in awe as the colours exploded further into small flowers of light. This set off a chain reaction as more fireworks were released, lighting up the dark backdrop. One final firework went off, depicting the Yondaime standing victorious over a downed Kyuubi. The colours shimmered before fading like a mirage, into the dark night sky. The crowd cheered and applauded as the 'Yondaime' bowed and released the henge, to reveal a man with his brown hair pulled into a spiky ponytail that made his head look like a pineapple. The most prominent feature on the man was the long scar going horizontally over the bridge of his nose. Soon, the man playing the 'Kyuubi' emerged from behind the stage and took off the mask and weapons to reveal that 'Kyuubi' was, in fact, played by a brown haired lady. The two ninja left the stage to make way for the two hosts.

"Well, did you enjoy the show?" Tsume asked, though the question was directed mostly at Naruto. The three nodded eagerly, fighting to describe their favourite part of the show first. The format of the play and the actors differed every year, but the actors were always ninja and every year, they never failed to capture the attention of the audience. "Well, let's get out of here and go tour the festival a bit more before they drag us into the weird karaoke thing they have going," Tsume said, getting up from her seat.

"How about that dashing brown haired young man over there," and the spot light shining on Kiba told them that they had failed in getting away. One of the civilian hosts in casual clothes hopped off the stage and bundled Kiba onto it.

"I can't sing," Kiba protested, telling the truth, and hoping that that would be his ticket off the stage.

"You won't know until you try," the host said jovially, shoving Kiba into the centre of the stage and pointing at the small screen before the two where the words, 'Romeo and Cinderella' were displayed.

"What's 'Romeo and Cinderella'? Isn't it 'Romeo and Juliet' and 'Cinderella and… some prince'?" Kiba asked, flustered. In the audience, Tsume sighed before feeling a tug on her kimono.

"What is it, Naruto?" Tsume asked, crouching down to level with the blond.

"Can I go to the toilet? I'm really urgent," Naruto asked.

"Sure. Just go behind the stage and you'll find the toilet there. Remember to go into the correct one," Tsume said, smiling in amusement as a red tinge spread across the blond's face. He was reminiscing the time he'd accidentally walked into the girl's toilet. Luckily for him, it was deserted. It was only the lack of urinals that had ticked him off to his error. Naruto scrambled off, disappearing behind the stage. 'I can only pray that nothing happens to him,' Tsume thought, turning to Hana.

"Well, we might as well watch your little brother sing. I doubt it'll be very pleasant though. You've heard how he sings in the bath," Tsume sighed, handing Hana a pair of earplugs, which the younger Inuzuka gratefully accepted.

Kiba stood, sweating bullets as he stared blankly at the screen. Apparently, 'Romeo and Cinderella' was the name of the song he was expected to sing.

"Well, are you ready?" the host asked kindly.

Kiba shook his head.

"I'll give you a few more minutes. The crowd's starting to get bored," the host informed him. Kiba nodded numbly before the host walked away.

"Psst. Kiba," caught the Inuzuka's ears and Kiba immediately turned around to find Naruto holding a plug pin. "I found an extra microphone. You won't mind if I sing for you, do you?" Naruto smirked playfully. "Thanks Naruto! But are you sure you can sing?" Kiba tackled the blond. "It'd be better than you singing anyway," Naruto quipped, shoving Kiba off. The host came back and ushered Kiba back onstage while Naruto hid, switching the plug in the amplifier for the one attached to the microphone he was holding. Soon music pervaded the air and he began to sing, tapping his hand against his thigh to the beat.

_watashi no koi wo higeki no JULIET ni shinai de_

_koko kara tsuredashite…_

_sonna kibun yo_

Naruto started the opening, and was stunned when he received cheers of encouragement. Tsume and Hana pulled the earplugs out of their ears and looked up at Kiba in astonishment. His singing had gone from crow to nightingale overnight. He'd sung in the shower the day before and would've made their ears bleed had they not worn their earplugs. Now, though, the voice singing sounded childish, but passionate and beautiful in its own right.

_PAPA to MAMA ni oyasumi nasai_  
><em>seizei ii yume wo minasai<em>  
><em>otona ha mou neru jikan yo<em>

_musekaeru miwaku no CARAMEL_  
><em>hajirai no suashi wo karameru<em>  
><em>konya ha doko made ikeru no?<em>

_kamitsukanaide yasashiku shite_  
><em>nigai mono ha mada kirai na no<em>  
><em>MAMA no tsukuru okashi bakari tabeta sei ne<em>

_shiranai koto ga aru no naraba_  
><em>shiritai to omou futsuu desho?<em>  
><em>zenbu misete yo<em>  
><em>anata ni naraba misete ageru watashi no…<em>

Naruto had the audience on their feet as a long beep sounded out.

_zutto koishikute CINDERELLA_  
><em>seifuku dake de kaketeiku wa<em>  
><em>mahou yo jikan wo tomete yo<em>  
><em>warui hito ni jama sarechau wa<em>

_nigedashitai no JULIET_  
><em>demo sono namae de yobanai de<em>  
><em>sou yo ne musubarenakucha ne<em>  
><em>sou ja nai to tanoshikunai wa<em>

_nee watashi to ikite kureru?_

The crowd was cheering and singing along with Naruto, and even Tsume and Hana couldn't resist tapping their feet to the rhythm as the chorus was being sung.

_senobi wo shita nagai MASCARA_  
><em>ii ko ni naru yo kitto ashita kara<em>  
><em>ima dake watashi wo yurushite<em>

_kuroi RACE no kyoukaisen_  
><em>mamoru hito ha kyou ha imasen<em>  
><em>koetara doko made ikeru no?<em>

_kamitsuku hodo ni itai hodo ni_  
><em>suki ni natteta no ha watashi desho<em>  
><em>PAPA ha demo ne anata no koto kirai mitai<em>

The crowd was still cheering and bobbing their heads to the song as Naruto vocalised the words. Tsume could feel the sadness and passion emanating from the words in the lines.

_watashi no tame to sashidasu te ni_  
><em>nigitteru sore ha kubiwa desho<em>  
><em>tsuredashite yo watashi no ROMEO<em>  
><em>shikarareru hodo tooku he<em>

Another long beep rang out, giving Naruto time to take a breath.

_kane ga narihibiku CINDERELLA_  
><em>GARASU no kutsu ha oiteiku wa<em>  
><em>dakara ne hayaku mitsukete ne<em>  
><em>warui yume ni jirasarechau wa<em>

_kitto ano ko mo sou datta_  
><em>otoshita nante uso wo tsuita<em>  
><em>sou yo ne watashi mo onaji yo<em>  
><em>datte motto aisaretai wa<em>

_hora watashi ha koko ni iru yo_

_watashi no kokoro sotto nozoite mimasen ka_  
><em>hoshii mono dake afurekaette imasen ka<em>  
><em>mada betsu hara yo motto motto gyutto tsumekonde<em>  
><em>isso anata no ibasho made mo umete shimaou ka<em>

_demo sore ja imi nai no_

_ookina hako yori chiisana hako ni shiawase ha aru rashii_  
><em>doushiyo kono mama ja watashi ha<em>  
><em>anata ni kirawarechau wa<em>

_demo watashi yori yokubari na papa to mama ha kyou mo kawarazu_  
><em>sou yo ne sunao de ii no ne<em>  
><em>otoshita no ha kin no ono deshita<em>

_usotsuki sugita CINDERELLA_  
><em>OOKAMI ni taberareta rashii<em>  
><em>doushiyou kono mama ja watashi mo<em>  
><em>itsuka ha taberarechau wa<em>

_sono mae ni tasuke ni kite ne_

The song ended, leaving the crowd shouting for an encore. They, too, had fallen in love with the singer's voice and the longing, passion and sadness that flowed from the lyrics sung. "Go, Kiba!" Hana shouted, whooping with the rest of the crowd as her mother clapped beside her, in shock. "Who knew Kiba could sing so well?" Hana turned to her mother.

"Yeah, who knew?" Tsume agreed, smiling as Kiba bowed and gave air kisses to the crowd.

"See? You can sing. You just had to try," the host ushered the Inuzuka off the stage via the back, where Kiba exited near the toilets. He saw Naruto hastily re-switching the plugs and stowing the microphone he'd used back to its rightful position. Kiba could still hear the crowd booing in protest, wanting an encore by the young Inuzuka (Uzumaki).

"That was awesome! Where'd you learn to sing like that?" Kiba marvelled, joining up with Naruto as they went around the back of the stage, towards Tsume and Hana. Naruto just shrugged and waved when they neared the two Inuzuka, waiting with the ninken and Shiro.

"That was incredible, Kiba! Where'd you learn to sing like that? You usually sound so horrible. Were your hiding your singing prowess all along?" Hana ran up to the two. "Naruto, you just missed the most major event of the year. Kiba can actually sing!" Hana rounded on Naruto.

"Why'd you take so long in the toilet, Naruto?" Tsume asked, concerned.

"Constipation," Naruto grinned, completely oblivious to the fact that he'd just said it in public. Yet another unlucky sap was dragged onto the stage and started singing 'Magnet' with her husband.

"Well, we should go before either of us has to go onstage again," Tsume herded the three children away from the stage, Naruto swiping up the goldfish.

The rest of the festival passed swimmingly, Tsume allowing them to stay up until midnight to watch the fireworks. The day after was a public holiday, so they could afford to stay up late. They watched as the fireworks painted bright pictures in the sky, the most featured being the Yondaime defeating the Kyuubi. At the end of it all, fireworks went up in the shape of Konoha's insignia, which exploded into smaller versions, before exploding into a final burst of light that lit up the night sky, making it as bright as day. Soon, the light died down and the festival ended, Tsume sending Naruto home while Hana and Kiba went to bed.

"This was the best birthday I've ever had. Thank you, Tsume-san," Naruto thanked once they reached his apartment.

"You don't have to thank me! Why don't we all go out to the festival every October 10th together to celebrate your birthday?" Tsume patted herself on the back for coming up with such a brilliant idea.

"Taking me to the festival today was more than I could ask for. Doing it again won't be necessary. I had fun today. Thank you," Naruto turned before he was pulled into a hug.

"I know you lost your parents and have lived alone since you were born, not counting the orphanage. I want to help. After all, you're my son's friend. You don't deserve to be alone. Come over whenever you feel like it. Our family welcomes you with open arms. Oh, and happy birthday," Tsume said gently before releasing Naruto and watching as the blond thanked her and retreated into the confines of his apartment. 'Damn it, Minato! Why'd you have to go and die like that? I can only hope that Kushina's kicking your ass for me up in heaven. Maybe I'll join in when my time comes,' Tsume thought playfully before walking back to the Inuzuka compound, her thoughts lingering on a certain blond haired, blue eyed boy.

**A/N: This was about Naruto going to festival with Kiba and his family. I'm not sure what your reaction will be because I JUST REALISED that most people don't like canon events. I'm really stupid, huh? Anyways, I used Vocaloid songs so please don't get angry at me. I might also mix in an element from Percy Jackson, so please don't hate me. Please review and thank you for your support.**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: The previous chapter was not so well received. I wonder why… Anyway, here's the next chapter. Singing is not the major component of this story! That's ridiculous! But it might play a part. If you have any questions, feel free to ask. Last chapter was only a filler of sorts.**

Chapter 5: Haunted House

"Kiba! I saw you singing the other day! I never knew you could sing!" was one of the many phrases that were directed at Kiba the moment he had stepped into the classroom. Apparently, quite a few of their classmates had been in the audience during the 'Kiba the Diva' affair. Rumours spread fast with Ino running the grapevine, and soon, the entire school had heard about Kiba going onstage to sing. "Sing, Kiba!" Ino challenged, wanting to prove the rumours untrue, which would create new material for gossip.

"Class is about to start soon. I'd better sit down and prepare," Kiba said quickly, turning to sit down.

"Oh no, you don't. Class starts in 5 minutes. We have time, and since when did you ever care about class?" Ino grabbed Kiba's arm. Kiba started sweating bullets, the rest of the class seeming to do everything they could to make him feel uncomfortable by chanting, demanding that he sing. Kiba turned to Naruto, only to see the blond smirking at his predicament, before turning to bury his face in his arms. Kiba turned to Shiro, hoping that the tiger could scare a few of his classmates off, but was greeted with the sight of the feline draped comfortably over Naruto's shoulders, napping. Kiba tentatively opened his mouth and was about to attempt to sing when the first ballad came tumbling out perfectly. Kiba turned to Naruto, and stared, before the next line flowed through the crowd around the Inuzuka. Kiba finally caught on and started lip singing, a few idle students who'd stayed out of the crowd previously drawing closer. Once the song drew to a close, nearly all the students were crowded around Kiba, urging him to sing another song.

"Everyone, sit down and shut up!" a voice boomed, it's owner standing at the front of the class, having come in a few minutes earlier during Kiba's 'performance'. "This is a classroom, not a concert. If you want to conduct something like this, do it after school," Iruka shouted, the children scrambling into their seats. "Today we'll be learning about the Yondaime…" Iruka droned on.

* * *

><p>Near the end of the lesson, Naruto turned to Kiba and tapped the Inuzuka on the arm with the butt of his pencil.<p>

"I think this might be the makings of your own fan club," Naruto chuckled softly once he'd captured Kiba's attention.

"What?" Kiba asked obliviously, taking his eyes off the paper aeroplane he was folding out of the worksheet.

"See that girl over there? She's been making googly eyes at you. That girl a few seats down? She's writing you a love letter. That brown haired girl who used to like Sasuke so much is now composing a poem about you. Very soon, they're gonna be stalking you and trying to get into your pants," Naruto gave another light chuckle which earned him a disapproving glare from Shiro.

"Why?" Kiba asked, smoothing down a fold on his paper aeroplane.

"Why indeed," Naruto smirked, twirling the pencil with his fingers.

"Naruto, pay attention!" Shiro hissed, using his paws to turn Naruto's head in the direction of the blackboard.

"The Yondaime was said to be a genius. A prodigy that came only once a generation. That's all for history. Any questions before we start herbology?" Iruka called out to the class.

"Yes, Shin?" Iruka called up to a brown haired boy.

"I saw you at the festival, sensei. You were the one playing the Yondaime weren't you? Was that brown haired lady your girlfriend or something?" Shin asked, his tone cheeky.

"That is completely unrelated to the Yondaime. I refuse to answer that question. Now, does anyone have any questions regarding today's lesson?" Iruka asked. "Yes, Ino?" Iruka called up to the blond with her hand raised.

"Did the Yondaime ever get married?" Ino asked, putting down her hand.

"No, I don't think so. Why'd you ask?" Iruka replied shaking his head.

"Well, did he ever have a child before he died? Did he have any relatives in this village?" Ino pressed.

"I don't think so, but why are you asking such questions?" Iruka asked, puzzled.

"Well, Sakura said that the picture you've put up on the blackboard looks like someone she knows," Ino declared, ignoring Sakura's nervous squeaks and pleas for her to forget about it. Everyone turned their attention to the photograph pinned on the board, taking in the subject of the photograph. The picture was of a fairly tall man with fair skin, spiky blond hair and blue eyes. He had a forehead protector tied to his forehead with Konoha's emblem carved into the metal, two jaw-length bangs hanging over the blue cloth. He wore standard Konoha-nin uniform and a flak jacket over it. To complete the ensemble was a white coat with flames licking the bottom. After drinking in the man's features, the students began scanning the room for anything that looked vaguely like the blond haired Hokage.

"Is it Sasuke? They both have spiky hair, they're both geniuses and they're both hot," a girl named Natsume squealed.

"How about Ino? They're both blond!" Gen shouted out teasingly.

"Ino's hair is too light coloured. Besides, she's from the Yamanaka clan. Maybe it's Kisa!" Hakuo called out.

"Enough! I already told you that Yondaime-sama did not have a child. If he did, we'd know about it, or there'd be someone bearing the name 'Namikaze'," Iruka yelled.

"How about Naruto?" Kiba looked up from his paper planes just in time to notice everyone staring at him.

"Kiba, Iruka-sensei ended this discussion a while ago. You didn't need to contribute that," Naruto whispered to Kiba.

"Oops. Sorry, but you do look a lot like what's-his-face up there on the board. Just that he doesn't have those whiskers on his cheeks and you don't have squinty eyes," Kiba pulled the sides of his eyes to emphasise his point.

"Kiba, show more respect for the Yondaime. To the rest of you, this discussion is closed. If you wish to further pursue this, do it after class," Iruka shouted.

"Hai, sensei," the students mumbled grudgingly. Iruka drew a host of complex diagrams on the board depicting plants and mushrooms that could be eaten and ones that were best avoided.

* * *

><p>Soon, the lecture ended and the students were released for lunch.<p>

"Um... Kiba-kun?" a petite strawberry blond cautiously approached the four, a blush staining her cheeks. The girl shoved an envelope into Kiba's hands before running off towards a small group of girls where she squealed and fanned her face. The group talked in hushed tones before they started squealing and jumping up and down in apparent glee.

"Who was that?" Kiba stared down at the letter in his hands in awe. The letter was covered in glittering hearts; the paper used for the envelope itself was pink and the flap was held closed with a small pink heart-shaped sticker.

"She was the girl I told you about just now. Open it," Naruto urged his friend.

"I think she likes you," Chouji pointed out helpfully.

"Mendokuse. Just open it or we'll have to deal with a 'Naruto Whine' and you know just how bad that is," Shikamaru drawled.

"Hey! My whine does not need to be branded. Besides, I'm not that irritating. Right, Kiba?" Naruto turned to Kiba, who was still staring at the love letter like it was the Holy Grail.

"Just open it, Kiba," Chouji said. Kiba slid his fingers under the flap and delicately pulled it away, before pulling a piece of paper from the envelope. It was pink.

"Read it, Kiba!" Naruto urged again.

"'Dear Kiba, I've never noticed how hot you were until now. I was so moved by that song. Your voice is as pure and beautiful as a nightingale singing in twilight, and just as brave, singing when no other nightingale would dare. Your eyes sparkle like the stars above and I can't help but feel that your gaze pierces my soul. I will never leave you alone. I don't care if your dad hates me. Let's run away together where we can live happily. It's okay that you don't like bitter things. I can wait. And when the time comes, let me…'" Kiba trailed off, before refolding the envelope and slotting it back into the envelope, a blush on his cheeks.

"Well, what else is in it?" Chouji asked, tossing a few chips into his mouth.

"Naruto, you were right. I think she's trying to get into my pants," Kiba said, his voice shaky.

"It'll only get worse. Mendokuse," Shikamaru sat down at the base of 'their' tree.

"Yeah. Look," Naruto pointed to a small group of girls who were running in their direction.

"Shikamaru! Chouji! Naruto! Save me!" Kiba cried before taking off. The Inuzuka managed to choke down a slab of meat before lunch was over. "They are going to be the death of me," Kiba wheezed.

"Then it's lucky you're not Sasuke," Naruto teased.

Kiba glared.

Naruto shut his mouth.

"Well, at least you won't have to deal with them now. They've gone back into the classrooms for a lesson on how to set a table," Shikamaru said. Kiba brightened a bit and even broke his personal record on the obstacle course. They had moved to a harder course, and yet Naruto had managed to complete most of it with ease. Balance was one of his specialties after all.

"And I was dashing across and when I finally got to the end, I had beaten my own record! I bet I even beat yours, Naruto!" Kiba boasted.

"Well, we'll have no way of knowing that, since Mizuki-sensei keeps mixing your records up with someone else," Shikamaru said, casting a sideways glance at Naruto.

"At least we'll have something to look forward to. A whole night in the forests! All we have to do is get these scraps of papers signed!" Naruto shouted eagerly, gesturing wildly.

"I don't see what's so exciting about survival training," Chouji said.

"Don't the words 'No' and 'Parents' mean anything to you? Par-tay!" Kiba whooped.

"Mendokuse. Iruka-sensei will be supervising us to make sure we don't accidentally kill ourselves or something, so we are not par-tay-ing," Shikamaru turned his eyes skyward when Naruto and Kiba both deflated.

"Let's all go to Kiba's place and play Truth or Dare," Naruto suggested.

"That's lame, Naruto," Chouji said.

"Do you have any better ideas?' Naruto shot back.

The group fell silent.

"Okay. Let's just go with my idea," Naruto said.

* * *

><p>The four cut across a training field and were shocked to hear sounds of shouting and a small voice hiccupping and crying. The four approached the sounds. A few seconds later, Shiro spoke up, "It's Sakura. Ami and her posse are bullying her again. I don't think Ino's there." Naruto nodded, acknowledging the information. The group emerged in a clearing and were greeted with the scene of Sakura, curled up in a tight ball, crying, cosmos flowers scattered around her. Ami and her two friends were standing imperiously over the pink haired girl, sneering and hurling verbal barbs at her.<p>

"What are you doing?" Kiba shouted out. Ami and her friends turned their heads towards the four. A blush immediately crept up Ami's cheeks the moment she laid eyes on Naruto.

"This is none of your business, dog-breath," one of Ami's lackeys sneered.

"Why you…" Kiba growled, before Shikamaru stopped him.

"Just leave her alone, Ami," Naruto shouted, trying to defend his crush.

"Okay. Girls, we're going," Ami snapped her fingers insistently.

The two girls looked at Ami, confusion painted on their faces, before scrambling after their leader.

"She just left? Just like that? No, 'Who the hell are you to boss me around, blondie?' Either I'm hallucinating or she's had a screw knocked loose," Kiba slapped himself to confirm that it was not a dream.

"Kiba, I think we should be tending to Sakura and not pondering how the female mind works," Naruto said, kneeling down next to Sakura. Kiba turned around and the four clustered around Sakura.

"Are you okay?" Naruto asked, helping the pink-haired girl up. Sakura only managed a weak nod.

"Where's Ino? Isn't she normally with you?" Chouji asked, stuffing chips into his mouth.

"I-Ino went home. I l-live further f-from the a-academy th-than her. I-I wanted to pick some flowers here a-and th-they ambushed m-me," Sakura choked out, trying hard not to cry. Pink strands hung over Sakura's face as she wiped her eyes. "Wh-where's my ribbon?" she gasped, realising that the red ribbon Ino had given her was not holding her hair back anymore.

"Is this it?" Naruto asked, holding out a long scarlet ribbon.

"Yes. Thank you," Sakura snatched the ribbon away and frantically tied her hair back.

"Why were they teasing you?" Kiba asked.

"Because of my forehead. I hate it! Why does my forehead have to be so big and ugly?" Sakura shouted, a few strands of her hair flopping back down on her face.

"It's not ugly, just unique. It being big also means your really clever right?" Naruto grinned at Sakura. The pink haired girl looked at the blond, her eyes glassy. "Well, what was the Nidaime famous for?" Naruto quizzed her.

"His Suiton. His mastery over it was so great, he could conjure water from the moisture in the air," Sakura answered immediately.

"Describe to me how the Death Cap mushroom looks like," Naruto fired another question.

"It's about 3-6 inches across. It's convex initially, but flattens with age and is sticky to the touch. It's usually a shade of yellow to green, but can sometimes be white or brownish. There are white gills underneath the cap that don't run down the stem. The stem itself is between 3-6 inches across and less than and inch thick. It's usually whitish and sometimes covered with scales. There is often a ring around the stem beneath the cap which is the remnant of the partial veil. There is also always a white sac at the base of the stem. Found on the ground in the woods, although will occasionally appear in grassy fields. They're poisonous so it's best that you don't eat them, because, as the name suggests, you'll die," Sakura rattled off, gaining amazed looks from the four.

"See, you're really smart! All I remembered was the name, and that was the only one I remembered because of the 'Death' thing. I'm not going to die until I become Hokage!" Naruto shouted.

"What does your dream of becoming Hokage have to do with mushrooms? Idiot," Kiba punched the back of the blond's head. Sakura giggled at the performance.

"Well, I think that your forehead is pretty, so don't put yourself down because of it. Want us to walk you home?" Naruto asked, grinning. Sakura nodded weakly. The five then exited the training field.

* * *

><p>"We're going to Kiba's to play Truth or Dare. Wanna come along?" Chouji asked Sakura.<p>

"Let me ask my mom first," Sakura disappeared through the door and stayed inside for a while before emerging again.

"She said yes, but I have to be home in time for dinner," Sakura said, failing to hide the excitement from her voice. The group then continued on to Kiba's house, talking about the survival training around the corner. Tsume greeted them with open arms and retreated to the kitchen to prepare a few snacks for the guests.

"I call dibs on spinning the bottle first," Naruto shouted eagerly as they made their way up the stairs to Kiba's room.

"No fair. You can't call dibs before we reach the room," Chouji said.

"I just did," Naruto said smugly.

"Dibs on second," Sakura said quickly.

"What? I call dibs on spinning third," Kiba spluttered.

"Fourth. Shikamaru, looks like you spin last," Chouji said.

"Mendokuse," was Shikamaru's reply. Kiba set a bottle on the floor once they were all seated comfortably. Naruto grabbed the bottle and gave it a spin. The five watched intently before the bottle finally stopped on Sakura.

"Alright! Sakura, Truth or Dare?" Naruto asked.

"Truth," Sakura said.

"Okay. Do you have a crush on anyone? And if so, who?" Naruto asked.

"S-Sasuke-kun," a pink hue stained Sakura's cheeks.

"Not surprising, but do you think Sasuke likes being chased around and stalked by a group of horny girls? I was chased by a few a while ago and I can safely say that I kind of pity Sasuke," Kiba said.

"Don't speak as if you know him. I try my hardest to make myself pretty enough to be worthy of him," Sakura retorted.

"Don't you think that he would like you more if you train yourself to be a strong kunoichi? I mean, if he were to go out and make a name for himself, people would go after his family to get back at him and stuff. You'd just be in the way if you can't fight and protect yourself," Shikamaru said lazily.

"You…" Sakura said, tears in her eyes. "No, you're right. I have to become strong for my Sasuke-kun."

"Weren't we playing Truth or Dare? It's your turn to spin you know?" Chouji informed Sakura.

"Right," Sakura grabbed the bottle and gave it a spin. It stopped at Kiba.

"Kiba, Truth or Dare?" Sakura asked. "Dare, Kiba said confidently.

"I dare you to get up on the roof and sing," Sakura said. "I've talked to your sister before and she's always said that your voice has the power to burst people's eardrums. I won't believe that you can sing as well as the others say until I hear it with my own two ears."

"I thought he sang before class today," Chouji said.

"I was late today, remember? I didn't hear it," Sakura reminded them.

"Right. Let's go onto the roof," Naruto said, springing up and taking the lead. The four settled as comfortably as they could get on the roof. Naruto stuck his head over the side of the roof the moment Kiba opened his mouth and sang in the Inuzuka's place. The song ended in a few minutes, leaving Sakura staring wide-eyed at Kiba.

"So you can sing," Sakura mumbled. The five made their way back down to Kiba's room, where Tsume was waiting with a tray of sandwiches and glasses of soda.

"I'm going out for a while. The house had better be intact when I come back so try not to burn it down," Tsume swept out of the room.

"My turn to spin," Kiba grabbed the bottle and gave it a spin, the tip of the bottle stopping on Sakura again.

"Sakura, Truth or Dare?" Kiba asked.

"Dare," Sakura answered.

"I'm going to get you back. I dare you to go and French Kiss Hana for 10 seconds," Kiba smirked.

"What? But she's also a girl! I can't do that! I'm not a lesbian!" Sakura shouted, panicking.

"Do you have something against gays? That's just not right, Sakura," Chouji frowned.

"Just do it. It'll be funny," Naruto grinned.

"For you. You're not the one who has to go and French Kiss Hana!" Sakura shot back.

"Come on, Sakura. Don't be such a spoilsport," Kiba grinned. "Or you might have to deal with a 'Naruto Whine'."

"What the hell is that?" Sakura snapped.

"Only the most annoying, irritating, ear-aching whine you've ever heard. And it's all stored inside blondie here," Shikamaru said, rolling his eyes.

"Fine, I'll do it, but I'm gonna get you back for that later," Sakura stormed off, followed closely by a smirking Kiba.

"So much for meek and timid. Seems she's comfortable being like this around us," Naruto grinned. Shikamaru nodded in agreement. A minute later, Kiba and Sakura came back, the pink haired girl spitting and trying to clean out her tongue with her hands.

"My turn," Chouji gave the bottle a spin, and the bottle ended up pointing at Naruto.

"Naruto, Truth or Dare?" Chouji asked, stuffing a fistful of chips in his mouth.

"Dare," Naruto said without hesitation.

"I dare you to go to that creepy house beside the Hyuuga estate at night," Chouji dared.

"Creepy house?" Naruto asked.

"You know, the one beside the Hyuuga estate. No one's gone near it in years. They say that the owner of the house still patrols the grounds at night and zaps anyone who dares try to enter," Kiba said.

"Why zap people? And I thought ghosts were intangible," Naruto said.

"Yeah, but anyone who even tried opening the front gate ended up in the mental hospital with multiple wounds and some such," Sakura added.

"And you're daring me to try entering? Are you trying to get me killed?" Naruto shouted.

"Maybe," Chouji shrugged playfully. "But it still stands. Sakura French kissed Hana, so you have to try and enter. But don't worry. We'll go with you."

"Yeah. Thanks. I feel so much better now," Naruto said sarcastically.

"Let's sneak out at night and go together. How does that sound?" Kiba asked.

"I'm game," Shikamaru yawned.

"You four can go, but I don't want to risk being loopy for the rest of my life," Sakura said.

"But it'll be fun. Or are you too chicken to go," Kiba taunted.

"Alright, I'll go. But don't hug me and cry for your mommy when you get scared," Sakura said.

"Kiba, I just had a random flash. That letter that that girl gave you? It said that she didn't care that your dad hated her, but your father died during the Kyuubi attack. Do you know what she was talking about?" Naruto asked. Kiba shook his head no.

"It's getting late. I need to go home for dinner," Sakura said.

"Me too," Chouji said.

"I second that. I think," Shikamaru drawled.

"We'll meet up in front of the Hyuuga estate at 11PM. Don't be late," Kiba said.

* * *

><p>They parted ways, Naruto making a beeline for the Hokage Tower.<p>

"Jiji, there's going to be a survival exercise and I really want to go. Could you please sign the consent from?" Naruto pleaded.

"Sure. Pass it to me would you?" the Sandaime took the paper in his hands and signed it without sparing it a glance.

"Here," the old man handed the piece of paper to the blond.

"Thanks, Jiji!" Naruto shouted excitedly before scurrying off.

* * *

><p>The five met in front of the Hyuuga estate at exactly 11PM. Kiba had brought a few torches with him and was eager to use them.<p>

"Let's go!" Kiba shouted, ready and rearing to go. The group walked down the path, the only light available was from the street lights and from the stars and moon in the sky. They soon approached a large mansion. It was even larger than the Hyuuga estate and it took a while to get to the front gate. The house had not fallen into disrepair and looked pristine, rather than derelict. In the half-light of the moon, the mansion looked creepy, as if it could come to life and gobble them up. Kiba gulped and extracted a necklace made of garlic which he put around his neck.

"Here's the holy water, the silver bullets, the garlic, the wooden stakes, the wispy tree branch thingy and some chocolate," Kiba said, ticking off the things in his bag. "Kiba, we're not going to be attacked by vampires and stuff. Those are found in Transylvania. Does that house look like an old abandoned castle to you?" Naruto asked.

"No, but it's better to be safe than sorry," Kiba said. Akamaru whimpered and backed into Kiba's jacket.

"Well, we have to figure out how to get in first right?" Chouji said.

"Whooooo," Sakura did her best impression of a ghost, scaring Naruto and Kiba.

"Ahhhh!" Naruto screamed, crashing into Kiba.

"Hahaha! You should have seen your faces," Sakura laughed.

"What did you do that for?" Kiba asked.

"I told you I'd get back at you two," Sakura said smugly.

"Damn. I think I cut myself," Naruto lifted his right hand and, true to his word, it was dripping with blood. He'd gashed the back of his hand on a wooden stake.

"It'll heal. Just come over here. I think I've found something," Shikamaru pointed at a spot on the gate.

"What is that? It looks like those things on the exploding tags," Chouji mused.

"I think it's a blood seal," Naruto said, touching the seal with his injured hand.

"Oh shit! I got some blood on it," Naruto shouted. "Who cares? It's probably so old that the effects have worn off. And since when did you know about seals?" Kiba asked.

"Shiro forced me to read about them and their surprisingly interesting," Naruto said.

"We really don't need you to start talking technical mumbo jumbo about a bunch of squiggles right now. Just open the gate," Chouji said.

"Fine, but if I land in hospital, I'm blaming you," Naruto gripped the handle and yelped.

"The door just shocked me!" Naruto cried.

"But it opened, didn't it?" Shikamaru said.

"It did?" Naruto turned to see the gate open.

"Maybe you were right after all, Kiba," Naruto admitted. The five entered, the gate clicking shut behind them of its own accord and spooking them.

"I'd love to come here in the day, and even now, it just seems so quiet and serene. It doesn't seem like a place where a ghost would live," Naruto said.

"Really? It seems super scary to me," Sakura shivered. They entered the house and jumped as the hinges of the door creaked menacingly, before shutting them inside.

"Hey, what's that? Those two glowing things?" Kiba asked, reaching out to grab them.

"Ow! Kiba! That was my eyeball you just poked!" Naruto hissed, bringing one hand up to cover his eye.

"Sorry. It was glowing, so I thought…" Kiba trailed off.

"They're not glowing, they're reflecting the light of the moon," Shiro pointed up at a shaft of moonlight seeping in through the windows.

"Now that you mention it, I can see everything perfectly. Why would you need a flashlight, Kiba?" Naruto asked as Kiba flicked on a torch.

"It's not just me, the rest of us can't see much, you know," Kiba said, the other three nodding in agreement.

"Okay. Now that we all have flashlights, we split up and go explore. Me with Shikamaru, Sakura and Naruto with Kiba," Chouji said. The five split into their two groups and went around the house.

"What's this?" Naruto pushed open a door and the three entered. They found themselves in a room with a bed large enough for two people, and pictures lining the wall and a desk.

"Isn't this the Yondaime?" Sakura pointed to a blond man in one of the many photos.

"Yeah, you're right! But who's that red haired lady? Could she be his girlfriend?" Kiba asked.

"I don't think so. I think she's his wife. Take a look at this," Naruto pointed at a photo in which the two were getting married in the Hokage's office. "Not exactly a church, but they're married."

"I found the certificate," Kiba waved a piece of paper in the air.

"Well, we can safely say that this was the Yondaime's house, but sensei said that he wasn't married. Was he lying, or did he really not know?" Sakura pondered.

"Whatever! Let's go explore some more," Kiba dragged the two out of the room and into another one. There was a large desk covered in papers. Behind it were rows of shelves, each stuffed to the brim with books.

"Wow! Take a look at this! He's got tons of books! And there are dozens of notes on the table. His handwriting's also really neat," Kiba marvelled.

"Of course. What would you expect. He's a seal master, and when you're drawing a seal, one slight mistake could cost you your life," Naruto said.

"I don't think these are Yondaime sama's. It says 'Kushina' at the top. I'm guessing that was the red haired lady's name. These are Yondaime sama's," Sakura said, opening a file. Complex diagrams were scattered across the papers, along with an assortment of barely readable handwriting scrawled wherever there was space.

"Whoa. That's really messy. So much for being a seal master," Kiba chuckled.

"Who cares? At the very least he never got his face blown off," Naruto spluttered.

"Take a look at this!" Sakura whispered excitedly. She pulled a book down on the first shelf and one of the book cases moved. As soon as it moved, though, a hail of kunai came flying out at her. Naruto pushed her away in time and looked back at the many kunai embedded in the floor. "Let me try," Naruto ran his fingers over the spines and randomly pulled out a few before Sakura could stop him. Luckily no kunai came flying out and the remaining shelves slid away to reveal a large seal on the floor. It was very complex.

"Now what?" Kiba asked.

"We put the books back, and leave it the hell alone," Naruto suggested wisely. The others agreed. They re-shelved the books and left the room in favour of another one, the shelves sliding back into place as they exited.

"Naruto, why does this door have your name on it?" Kiba asked, shining his torchlight at a door covered in animal stickers and rainbows. A sign hung on the door, animals and clowns framing the word, 'Naruto'.

Naruto shrugged, "Let's just check it out." They pushed the door open, three pairs of feet setting foot inside the room. It was a nursery. There was a baby blue cot filled with stuffed animals and a few picture books lining a small, squat bookshelf.

"I bet they were expecting a baby! That must mean that the Yondaime might have had a child!" Sakura whispered excitedly.

"Or the baby could have died during the Kyuubi attack," Kiba said. Naruto ventured into the room and picked up a picture. It was of the Yondaime and the lady, Kushina, standing at the front of the house. There was a large bulge at Kushina's stomach, indicating that she was pregnant.

"Let's go. There's not much to see here," Kiba said.

"No, I want to stay here for a while more. I'll catch up with you later," Naruto said quietly. Kiba shrugged and led Sakura out of the room. Naruto went around the room, picking up the soft toys and giving them a squeeze. He smiled when they squeaked the moment he applied pressure on them. He sat down and pulled out an album he'd spotted. Results of scans could be found inside, the pictures a swirling mass of black and white. He could just make out the silhouette of a baby. A sharp scream jerked him out of his musings and he burst out of the room, running towards the source of the sound, Shiro hot on his heels.

"What happened?" Naruto shouted, seeing Kiba passed out on the ground, several small cuts littering his body.

"He tried to go down there and nearly made it past the landing when a seal activated and tried to turn him into a shish-kebab via kunai," Shikamaru explained. "Luckily, Chouji got him out before he could be skewered to death."

"You should know better than to try and get into secret basements, especially if they belong to a Hokage, and if said Hokage is a seal master," Naruto tutted. "Well, at least you're still alive."

"That's not the point! I bet the whole corridor is riddled with traps, like a tomb or in pyramids," Kiba said, getting up.

"I think that's enough for today. It's already midnight, and we should be in bed. Let's just try not to get killed on the way out," Sakura sighed. The rest agreed. It was enough adventure for one night and they were lucky not to have been killed.

"Remember. Don't touch anything," Kiba stressed.

"Says the guy who almost went to meet the owner of this mansion," Naruto quipped.

Kiba shot Naruto a glare.

They made it out of the mansion alive.

"See you guys tomorrow. Remember to get those consent forms signed. I don't want to be stuck in a forest with Sar-su-gay and co.," Kiba spat.

"Don't talk about Sasuke like that," Sakura smacked Kiba upside the head.

"Why not? He has all those fangirls and yet he doesn't have a single girlfriend. Doesn't that mean he's gay?" Kiba said.

"Well, you had fangirls chasing you during lunch today. What do _you_ think?" Sakura retorted.

"She's right, you know," Chouji said. "You were running away from them pretty fast." Kiba growled. They all bade farewell and parted ways.

'Survival training. I bet it's going to be fun!' Naruto thought, grinning to himself.

**A/N: Cyber cookie to anyone who can guess the Percy Jackson (Heroes of Olympus) element. It's not very obvious, though. Never mind. Just do it for fun. Anyway, the Kiba fanclub thing will be explained later. I know for sure that anyone can guess whose house was featured as the haunted house. I'm really bored and I want to see if anyone can guess my gender, but I guess that's not very practical. Something else you can do for fun. It should be pretty obvious, though. Sorry it took so long, but between homework, countdown, family outings and school, I don't really have much time. I can't be an unsociable hermit now can I? ;) **


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: I'm burned out. I want to continue this story, but I really want to read your reviews, so please take the time to review. Or maybe you just want me to delete the story? I'll be more than happy to I guess… O-levels are coming, so maybe it won't be such a bad idea… I don't even know what I'm talking about anymore. Sigh… Happy Chinese New Year, by the way. **

Chapter 6: Survival

"What. The hell. Did you just do?" Kiba asked slowly, losing his patience by the second. Naruto blinked owlishly beneath his cocoon of green canvas and laughed nervously.

"Well, you see…" Naruto trailed off.

"Yes…?" Kiba prompted, sounding frustrated.

"I was just playing with the string because it looked so fun and got tangled and tried to untangle myself but I fell over a peg and the whole thing just fell on top of me and Shiro and got my shirt stuck on a pole and my butt is falling asleep so save me!" his words came out in an unitellegible rush. Naruto drew in a deep breath. "So, yeah."

"So you mean to tell me, that you, being your usual klutzy self, managed to bring down the entire tent that I spent thirty minutes interpreting without an instruction manual and three hours we spent pitching in THIRTY FRICKIN' SECONDS?" Kiba yelled, his face looking like a beet root.

"Pretty much," Naruto flinched, having hoped that his fast-talking would throw Kiba for a loop. His other two team mates looked confounded, but, unfortunately for him, Kiba had known him for too long for that to work.

"Emo king, pokey pokey finger girl, help me untangle Mega Klutz here. We have to get the tent up AGAIN thanks to the extreme stupidity of blonds called Naruto. (No offence to anyone who's reading this, is blond, and is called Naruto.) Let's just try working faster this time. We need to get it up by lunch or we'll go without food until dinner!" Kiba shouted to his team mates, wiping sweat off his brow with the sleeve of his hoodie.

"Hey! I'm not blond!" Naruto yelled indignantly. "I mean I'm not stupid! I can help!"

"Clearly, monsieur. Care to recall who collapsed the tent in the first place?" Kiba spoke, putting on a fake French accent.

"Let me, or I'll whine," Naruto drew in another deep breath.

"Fine, but I will put you in le straitjacket with a muzzle on, unless you can refrain from pulling, prodding, batting, touching, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera anything that is not required, capiche?" Kiba said, his fake accent still in place.

"Alright, mademoiselle. Just don't get your panties in a bunch. Sheesh, ever since Iruka-sensei appointed you team leader, you've been acting all uptight, like you've got a stick up your arse, or someone gave you a wedgie," Naruto grumbled. "Now could you just get me out of here so we can start pitching this thing?"

Kiba grunted in annoyance as the three mobile ninjas-in-training began to unravel the green canvas and the other bits and bobs.

"Thanks," Naruto huffed, crawling out of the green nest and dragging Shiro along with him.

"Just don't get tangled again, idiot," Sasuke said, sneering.

"What did you say, jackass?" Naruto growled.

"Oh, so now you're deaf as well as brain-dead? Good job," Sasuke smirked.

"You-" Naruto was cut off by a smack upside the head.

"Don't just stand there bickering. Come help us! Pokey pokey finger girl looks like she's about to collapse!" Kiba shouted, jerking his head at the girl holding on to the pole, trying desperately to lift it up and connect it with the others to form an 'E' shape.

"I-it's o-okay K-Kiba-k-kun. I-I c-can," Hinata cut short and abruptly screamed when the structure fell on her leg as she tried to lift it after completing the formation.

"PPFG!" Kiba shouted.

"Powerpuff Girl?" Naruto looked bewildered, temporarily forgetting about the girl.

"Don't just stand there gawking like an idiot, go help her!" Sasuke shouted at Naruto.

"Oh, and why aren't you going to help her yourself if you can take the time to insult me?" Kiba shot back.

"I wasn't insulting you, I was insulting someone who had enough brain cells to actually hold a decent conversation with me," Sasuke said, nodding at Naruto, who was trying to lift the structure off of the Hyuuga heiress. "And now I am insulting you."

"Oh, you think you're so funny, do you?" Kiba growled, jabbing a finger in Sasuke chest.

"Kiba! You were supposed to be the team leader here! Help me get this off of Hinata-chan!" Naruto called, still struggling with the wooden poles.

"This is not over," Kiba said, glaring holes into the Uchiha as he approached Hinata, the target of his gaze sauntering over towards the girl as well. The three lifted the structure off, Hinata sobbing quietly and whimpering occasionally.

"It'll be okay. Just hang in there. You're doing great," Naruto cooed, holding on to the poles.

"What the hell are you doing? Flirting? Save that for later, moron," Sasuke said as the three lowered the poles to the ground.

"Can't you see? Her leg's broken! Or are you blind? Even a, I quote from Sasuke Almighty, 'Someone with not enough brain cells to hold a decent conversation' can see it," Kiba spat, indicating at Hinata's leg.

"That's not helping, Kiba!" Naruto ground out, before returning to reassuring Hinata and trying to take her mind off her leg.

"Hmph. Now she's just going to get in the way. It's your fault for leaving that incompetent girl to do the frame of the tent," Sasuke sneered, dropping the poles, Naruto and Kiba yanking their fingers away in time.

"Hinata, I need to look at your leg," Naruto said.

"N-no," Hinata shied away from the blond.

"I won't touch it. I promise," Naruto assured her.

"B-but. I-it hurts," Hinata sniffed, tears springing into her eyes again.

"It'll be okay. Just let me take a quick look at it, and then we'll call Iruka-sensei," Naruto said, smiling.

"O-okay," tears began running down the Hyuuga heiress' face again. The blond inspected the wound as his other two team mates hung back and watched with slight amusement.

"It's not that serious. I think I should be able to heal it…" Naruto muttered.

"Wh-What? N-no! P-Please! C-call I-Iruka-s-sensei!" Hinata drew away from the blond.

"But sensei's not here yet, remember? He said he'd only be coming at lunch to see if we can actually take care of ourselves! We're alone here for now! Ahhh! What to do?" Kiba shouted, pacing around the fallen tent.

"Then let the idiot heal you! Look, I don't care if he'll botch it and we'll have to amputate your leg afterwards, I just want a functioning team with people on it that actually have brains and do not drop tent framework on their legs! She'll have to go home and we'll have to go home, so all of you get your asses in gear!" Sasuke seethed quietly, striding off to grab the fly sheet and stakes.

"Ignore him, Hinata. He's just a jerk. Tch. Who died and made him team leader? I certainly didn't," Kiba groused, accidentally nudging Hinata's leg.

Hinata cried out, "P-please, j-just h-heal i-it. I-I th-think I c-can't t-take i-it a-anymore. I-it h-hurts!" Hinata began to cry again. The two boys exchanged a glance.

"You'd better not try. Your sensei might have taught you how to do this, but he's always been aiding you while you were practicing. It might be too much for you. What if you can't control your chakra and blow up her leg or something?" Shiro warned, but the blond ignored him. He put his hands just centimetres above the girl's leg, where there was a slight raise in the skin, and concentrated. Green energy formed around the boy's hands as sweat beaded his fore head. Hinata gritted her teeth and shut her eyes, preparing for pain, but slowly relaxed when she felt the pain slowly ebbing away to a dull throb. Then, even that was gone.

"M-my l-leg! I-it's o-okay!" Hinata exclaimed, moving to touch her leg.

"Don't. Wait for a while. I'm not very good at this yet," Naruto said, not taking his hands or eyes off her leg.

"O-okay," Hinata withdrew her hand. Sweat impinged his eyes, but he just blinked them away, ignoring the burning sensation in his eyes.

"There! I think that should be okay," Naruto said, pulling away and wiping away the sweat on his face, panting slightly.

"Th-thank y-you," the Hyuuga delicately touched her leg.

"You two done yet? We need you two to pull those two at the end and hammer them into the ground!" Kiba called over to them, holding on to one end of the tent. Hinata yelped and scurried off to grab another corner of the tent, holding the loop in place with a stake.

"Whoa! I didn't really mean it! Naruto! You can actually heal people? Cool!" Kiba shouted, grabbing a mallet and hammering down the stake. "So if I get hangnail I can come to you, then?"

"Don't go crying to your mother if I accidentally blow up your finger instead!" Naruto shouted back, hammering the stake on his end, driving it deep into the ground.

"I was just joking, lighten up! But seriously, you never told us you knew Iryou-ninjutsu! Who taught you?" Kiba asked.

"Kabuto-sensei helps me when he's not on a mission. Said something about helping a kindred soul," Naruto said as the four hammered in the peg to secure the fly sheet. "He's still a Gennin, but his medical skills are incredible!"

"How did you meet him?" Kiba asked.

"Well, he said he saw me training so hard and that he could sympathise. He healed me and I asked him if he could teach me that. He agreed. It was just after the festival last year, and he's taught me so much!" Naruto warbled.

"Seems like a really great guy," Kiba commented.

"I know. He even helps me with stuff I don't understand, and treats me to ramen sometimes, when he's back from his missions, of course," Naruto gabbled excitedly as they hammered in the last few pegs.

"Well, sensei said that we were using other tents as a groundsheet. I thought he was joking. Apparently not," Kiba said, procuring two tents from the bag they were given.

"Spread them out, then," Sasuke commanded.

"I don't have to be told by a blungeoned carrion of a flagant half faced barnacle two farts what to do," Kiba retorted, getting confused looks from his team mates.

"What?" Naruto said cleverly, voicing what was on their minds.

"I just made that up. Classic Shakespearean insult don't you think?" Kiba chuckled, ducking into the tent to spread the tent-turned-ground sheet.

"We're finally done! And we're in time for lunch! Let's go!" Kiba shouted, the other three chasing after him to the campfire.

"Okay, students. Today's the first day of your survival training. We'll be staying overnight, and you'll be going home tomorrow. I'll be looking after you and it seems none of you have managed to kill yourselves. Yet," Iruka looked pointedly at Naruto. "I know you're all hungry, so we'll eat the food catered, but for dinner, you'll be catching, killing, plucking, de-skinning and cooking your own food. There's a stream running through the campsite just over there so you'll be bathing in there and drinking water from it. If you want luxuries such as a clothes rack, shoe rack and etcetera, you'll have to make your own. If you don't know how to do either of these things, don't know if something is edible or if any of you feel unwell, just come to me. Other activities will be announced after lunch." With that said, Iruka handed out boxed lunches to the students, the ones who received the food ripping the lids off and gobbling the contents greedily.

"This tastes good," Naruto said between mouthfuls of rice.

"Anything tastes good when you're hungry," Shiro said, tearing a rabbit in half and devouring it.

After the snuffling noises died down and the disposable boxes were thrown into a black rubbish bag, Iruka announced, "We'll be playing a game called 'Capture the Flag'. There will be different coloured flags scattered around the forest. Red, Blue, Yellow, Green, Orange, Purple, Pink and White. One for each team. Each team will receive one of each apart from their own. One of you will guard the seven flags while the others go around 'capturing' the other flags. Do whatever you have to do to get the flags, but maiming, killing or severely hurting other participants are not allowed. The first team to get six flags out of seven first, wins."

"But how will we know who got six flags first?" Gen asked.

"Well, you are allowed to sabotage other teams and steal their flags even if it's not yours, just for the sake of ensuring that they lose. All four members have to run back here with the flags in order to win, one missing member and it won't count, so you can ambush them for either their flag or their people. We will start on my red flare and end on my blue flare. Upon seeing the blue flare, you are all to assemble back here. It means someone's won. Anymore questions?" Iruka asked. No one responded. "Good," Iruka then pointed out where each team needed to go. Once all the teams were in position, a red flare erupted into the sky, signalling the start of the game.

"Okay. Naruto, you guard the flags. Me and Hinata will go attack this team here, and Sasuke will go solo and attack from the other side. We'll go in a pincer formation and we'll end up at the campsite. Lucky that we're directly opposite to the finish point isn't it?" Kiba grinned.

"But all four of us have to be there! How are we going to win with me still guarding the flags?" Naruto protested.

"Well, genius, unless we have some way to communicate with you, or if you can make the flags invisible, how are we supposed to do that?" Kiba rolled his eyes.

"Think outside the box. Now would be a good time to use those brain cells of yours, Uchiha," Naruto said. Sasuke remained silent and was about to open his mouth when Shiro started snarling and growling.

"Fuinjutsu? Right! I can use seals! Then no one will be able to see them and I can join you guys! You're a genius, Shiro!" Naruto hugged the tiger. A rumble of satisfaction rolled behind Shiro's throat.

"Revised teams. Me and Hinata, Naruto and Shiro, and Sasuke going solo. Look for the red flags and pound anyone who's taken our flags," Kiba buried a fist in his palm.

"W-wait, K-Kiba-k-kun! W-We'll a-also h-have t-to m-make s-sure o-others w-won't b-be a-able t-to w-win. N-Naruto-k-kun c-can g-grab a-an e-extra g-green a-and b-blue f-flag, Sh-Shiro-ch-chan c-can g-grab a-an e-extra p-pink f-flag, S-Sasuke-k-kun c-can g-grab a-an e-extra y-yellow f-flag a-and w-we c-can t-take a-an e-extra o-orange, p-purple a-and wh-white f-flag. Th-then a-all t-teams b-but o-ours w-would b-be o-out o-of th-the g-game," Hinata stuttered.

"That's a great idea, Hinata! Everyone, do as Hinata just said and follow your routes. Do your best! I'm sure we'll win!" Kiba shouted, boosting the team's morale.

Naruto turned around and pulled a pot of ink and a brush from his rucksack while the other three left. "Shiro, help me out here," Naruto turned to the tiger, who nodded and followed him up to the seven flags. The blond knelt down and drew the seal into the ground around the flags. It was free of grass free of grass and foliage. A small mercy. The blond went around, his strokes sure and precise. Soon, the seal was complete and Naruto stood up and activated the seal.

It didn't explode.

Naruto released a breath he didn't know he was holding.

"Come on, Shiro! Let's go steal some flags!" Naruto shouted, running off with Shiro following closely behind. Not long after, Naruto bumped into Kisa, a blonde haired girl. She was the Queen Bee and with her sunshine blond hair, model thin hourglass figure and sky blue eyes, she was the one every girl wanted to be, and the girl every boy wanted to date. And as a ninja, she was very talented. It was no wonder that some people had regarded her as the Yondaime's secret daughter. She ran past Naruto, not even sparing him a second glance. Despite all her looks and talent, she had a severe superiority complex. Hubris was her weakness. She had a red flag in her grip.

"Hey, Kisa! Think you could give me that flag?" Naruto confronted her.

Kisa just sneered at the other blond and said, "Oh, this? I just found it staked there next to my own flag, so I decided I'd take it. So, it's yours huh? Too bad. I've taken a liking to it. You'll just have to fight me for it. Oh, I forgot. You're too weak."

"Let's see about that," Naruto launched a punch, which Kisa easily caught, clenching her free hand in a fist and punching the other blond in the stomach. Kisa released Naruto's arm and the boy dropped to his knees, coughing and gasping for breath.

"See? Weak," Kisa sneered before setting fire to the flag right in front of Naruto as he lay in a foetal position, clutching his stomach. Kisa casually dropped the burning flag and took off, cackling with laughter. Naruto slowly got up, testing for any internal damage, before leaving the burning flag. If they didn't get all of the remaining six, they'd lose. The blond spotted six flags staked into the ground beside him and thanked whatever gods there were that the red flag was still there. He walked over and reached out to grab it when it disappeared. "Genjutsu?" Naruto thought, clasping his hands into a hand sign and shouting, "Kai!" The flags disappeared, leaving an empty clearing. "Dammit!" Naruto shouted, going off to look for more flags. His stomach throbbed with pain as he raced through the trees. Finally, he reached a clearing with four flags. The blond grabbed the red one, but noticed the absence of the green one and pink one, so he just grabbed the blue one and took off. He darted through the forest, crashing through all of his designated clearings and grabbing the red flags, along with the others that he was assigned. The only flag absent from all of the stations was the pink one. Finally, Naruto burst into the clearing, panting, and his heart sank. Kisa was already there, six pink ribbons in hand.

'Her team mates aren't here yet! We can still win!" Naruto thought, turning around as Sasuke burst into the clearing from the right and Kiba dragging Hinata along on the left. "Have we got all the flags?" Naruto asked as the four huddled together. "I lost one to Kisa. She even burned it!"

"You… You lost one too? Well, there goes our chance at winning. I lost one to Ami," Kiba grumbled.

"You nincompoops can't get anything right, can you? This is all your fault, Hinata," Sasuke said accusingly.

"Hey! Don't blame Hinata! She didn't do anything wrong!" Naruto hissed.

"I-It's o-okay, N-Naruto-k-kun," Hinata whispered.

"Hey, Naruto! Where's Shiro? Wasn't he with you?" Kiba asked.

"What are you talking about? He's… right… here…" Naruto paled. "Where is he?"

"Maybe he just went to hunt. Don't worry about it," Kiba said.

"That's impossible! Shiro never hunts without telling me first!" Naruto said, panic bleeding into his tone.

"Maybe he just didn't want to distract you from the game. I'm sure he'll come back," Kiba reassured the panicking blond.

"Maybe…" Naruto's voice drifted off.

"Since we obviously won't win, why don't we just sit down and wait," Kiba sat down on the grass, sighing in contentment.

Naruto wandered out of the clearing and spotted Ami, a red flag with her, about to cross over the boundary and into the clearing. 'If I can get that, we can win this,' Naruto thought, calling for the girl.

Ami stopped and jogged towards the blond, saying, "Hi, Naruto."

"Hi, Ami. Could you stay here with me for a while?" Naruto asked.

"I'm not sure… Kisa's waiting for me," Ami shifted, uneasy.

"Please, stay with me. Just for a little while," Naruto begged.

"Sure," Ami replied, hesitation gone. The two sat down on the forest floor and begun to engage in conversation.

"Did you actually steal a flag from Kiba?" Naruto asked, faking astonishment.

"That's right. Played dog boy like a harp, easy," Ami gloated.

"Can I see it?" Naruto asked, and Ami immediately handed the red flag over.

"Thanks, Ami," Naruto got up and broke into a run, going towards the clearing, ignoring Ami's shouts behind him.

"Guys, I got the last red flag!" Naruto shouted, only to be greeted by cheering from the team next to them.

It was just too little, too late.

Ami burst into the clearing, tears in her eyes. "You traitor! How could you? Taking advantage of my feelings!"

"Aww… Ami, can't you forgive and forget? It's only a game after all," Naruto whined.

"Huh?" Ami blinked. "Did we win?" Iruka released the blue flare, and in minutes, the entire class was gathered at the campsite.

"Congratulations to the white team! You four won't have to catch and cook your own dinner tonight, which means proper food!" Iruka announced. The team cheered and hooted, escaping the gruelling process of having to make a fire, and gruesome preparation and cooking of animals like rabbits and squirrels.

"It's not that bad, right guys? It'll be a good experience!" Naruto said.

"Says you," Kiba grumbled, making Hinata giggle as they launched into another verbal fight.

"It's about four right now. You can go and prepare for dinner. White team, you can go around and help or just relax. You won't have to do anything until Mizuki comes with the bento.

"Just great. Okay, Hinata will go gather twigs and kindlings. Make sure they're dry. Sasuke will be making the pit. Here's the aluminium foil, toothpaste and wire mesh. I'll go collect the water and Naruto will be gathering food, got it?" Kiba instructed.

The three nodded.

"Then get going! Vamoose! Skedaddle!" Hinata scurried off towards the forest with Naruto, Sasuke going to their sensei for the hoe, Kiba going towards the stream with the pot.

"N-Naruto-k-kun, i-is th-this a-a k-kindling?" Hinata asked, holding up a small, thin strand.

"Yeah. We need to find a lot of that to keep the fire going. Oh, there's a rabbit! Catch you later at the campsite!" Naruto ran off into the woods. Hinata sighed forlornlyand continued to forage for kindlings, picking them up in clumps and tossing them into a large rubbish bag.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, Naruto hunted down a fat brown rabbit. It flopped onto the ground repeatedly, a pathetic attempt at moving around. It was just too fat. Naruto pounced on it and bit its neck, satisfaction filling him as he felt its neck give way under his teeth. He picked the dead rabbit up, limp now, and stashed it away in a duffel bag. He scented another animal and ran towards it when the world tilted. 'Huh?' Naruto thought, shaking his head to clear his vision. The world came back into focus, clearer than before. Pain seared through his back, forcing him onto his knees. The blond gasped in pain and stayed, waiting for the pain to pass. When the pain persisted, he decided to get up, only to find that his legs were trembling too much to support his weight. The seconds crawled by, panic constricting the boy, his voice refusing to work. Then, he passed into merciful unconsciousness.<p>

His eyes flickered open to the waning orange light of the setting sun. He winced as he sat up, gingerly examining it and heaving a sigh of relief when he could find nothing wrong. 'Must have fallen asleep. Weird dream, though. Ahhh! All I have right now is one stupid fat rabbit! Kiba's gonna kill me if Sasuke doesn't first,' Naruto thought, scrambling to his feet and moving to an area with less shade, tracking a wild boar. The forest floor was bathed in a golden glow when he found the boar, snuffling through some bushes. His vision went blank and when he came back to the world of the living, the boar lay dead at his feet, his body covered in scratches. 'How did…? No time to question. I'd better bring this back. It's huge! It could feed all four of us and we'd still have some left over!' Naruto headed back to the campsite dragging the boar by a leg, picking edible mushrooms, nuts, berries and plants on the way back.

When he arrived back, his team mates stared at the giant boar, their mouths watering and their stomachs growling. "How did you get that? And it's still warm!" Kiba exclaimed.

"It died of old age. I just happened to come across it while it took its last breath," Naruto shrugged.

"Then how did you get all those scratches?"

"Had a scuffle with a rabbit."

"As expected of the Idiutus Moronicus. You can even manage to get yourself killed by the Easter Bunny," Sasuke sneered.

"Hey! It was a very vicious rabbit, okay?" Naruto shouted, pulling the fat rabbit from his duffel bag.

"Yeah. Very menacing," Sasuke rolled his eyes.

"P-Please, d-don't f-fight. W-we're a-all h-hungry a-and i-it's g-getting t-to u-us," Hinata stuttered.

"She's right. Let's eat first," Kiba said.

"Sasuke, you apply toothpaste to the bottom and sides of the pot, then go and help Naruto. Hinata, you set up the kindlings and twigs and light them. Sensei said that we could use matches. They're next to the aluminium foil. Sustain the fire while we boil the mushrooms. Naruto, skin the boar and remove the innards."

"What do we do with the innards?" Naruto asked.

"Just dump them in the forest," Kiba replied.

"But isn't that a waste?" Naruto frowned.

"Just do it," Kiba said, exasperated.

"Now go do your things. I'll be collecting some sand."

"But what about the innards?" Naruto asked again.

"I don't care about the bloody innards! I'm really stressed here! Please don't make it worse for me," Kiba's voice decreased in volume with each syllable.

"Sorry," Naruto brought out a kunai, dragged the boar away, before collapsing.

Kiba ran up to him, slapping the blond awake.

"What happened? You just… fell!"

"I… I don't know," Naruto frowned slightly.

"Well, you'd better not start fainting all over the place like an asthmatic in a whale bone corset or I'm going straight to Iruka-sensei," Kiba said sternly.

"Yes, Mother," Naruto rolled his eyes, before starting to skin the boar.

The sun was fast disappearing and time seemed to go by too fast.

"Why does this thing keep going out? Naruto, blow! The embers won't die so fast!" Kiba shouted at the blond. They were covered in ash but their fire seemed to refuse to burn. The blond blew on it and finally a small flame danced on the kindlings.

"Add twigs! Hurry, before it dies again!" Kiba shouted. Hinata slowly pushed in a few twigs before the fire died again.

"Damn it!" Naruto blew again, withdrawing quickly when fire flared upwards, nearly singeing off his eyebrows.

"Finally!" Kiba said, putting the wire mesh and spit over the fire, plonking the pot with the rabbit inside down onto the wire mesh, the boar on the spit.

Just then, Iruka came emerged into the clearing asking, "You four doing alright?" The four nodded and a round of 'yes' went up.

"Good. Is that a boar? You actually managed to catch and kill a wild boar?" Iruka said, astonishment in his voice. The four nodded.

"Well, enjoy your meal. When you're done, the girls go and bathe while the boys put out the fire and wrap it in the aluminium foil used to line the pit. Then, seal it into the scroll I gave your leaders just now, but be careful. It's hot. After that, the boys will go and bathe while the girls refill the pit. We'll gather at the main campsite after everyone's done and have a campfire, where you can tell ghost stories, have a sing-along and all that." Iruka left. The four sat around the fire, waiting for the food to cook.

"Shiro's still not back," Naruto sighed.

"Maybe he fell asleep somewhere. He'll come back. Stop worrying. Look, the food's ready," Kiba said. At the mention of food, Naruto cheered up. The four choked down the food, their stomachs filling to the brim.

"What are we going to do with the rest of the boar? There's still a lot left," Naruto burped.

"W-We c-can sh-share i-it w-with th-the r-rest o-of th-the c-class f-for a-a n-night s-snack," Hinata offered.

"Yeah, we can do that," Kiba said. "E-Excuse m-me. I-I h-have t-to g-go b-bathe n-now," Hinata excused herself and scurried off.

"Let's wrap this up. Idiutus Moronicus (No offense to anyone who's name is Idiutus or Moronicus), you grab the trash bags. Brain dead, you get the scroll sensei gave you," Sasuke instructed, moving to pick up the bottle of sand.

The two insultees glared at their insulter, before going for their respective items, grumbling to each other. Sasuke scattered the sand over the embers before wrapping the pile up in the aluminium lining, and lowering it onto the trash bag. Naruto wrapped it up hastily and Kiba quickly sealed the bundle into the scroll.

"Did you see that? The plastic was melting! How cool is that?" Naruto said.

"If it had burst and hit you, you would be cursing its very existence," Kiba said.

"I-it's y-your t-turn t-to b-bathe," Hinata informed the three boys as she appeared in the clearing, before going to the pit. The three hurried off to the stream, grabbing a fresh change of clothes, a towel and a bar of soap each on the way.

There were already several boys in the stream, trying to tip each other head first into the stream. The three peeled their clothes off their backs and entered the stream. The water was warm and clear. "What's that?" Kiba jabbed Naruto's back.

"What's what?" the blond craned his neck, trying to see what had caught his best friend's attention.

"Cool! You have a tattoo on your back! Where'd you get it?" Kiba shouted.

"I can't see," Naruto only caught a glimpse of a black line going near his shoulder blade.

"It goes all the way down to your leg. And you've got one on your neck, too! Sweet!" Kiba shouted, nearly pushing Naruto into the stream. The blond brought a hand up to his neck.

"Hurry up! We've only got a few more minutes left! I expect you all out of the water in two minutes!" Iruka shouted. The two boys hastily scrubbed themselves down, trying to get as much out of the bath as they could.

By the time they got back, Hinata was sitting on the floor, staring at a large lump on the ground. "I-I'm s-sorry. Th-The piece j-just w-wouldn't f-fit!" Hinata looked close to tears.

"It's okay. It's meant to be that way anyway," Kiba assured the Hyuuga.

"Really?" Hinata sniffed.

Sasuke snorted.

Kiba nodded and helped Hinata up before leading them to the main campsite.

They sat around a blazing campfire. The air was cool. The sky was dotted with stars. They were roasting marshmallows. And eating boar for a midnight snack. It was perfect. The students bonded through campfire songs, ghost stories and marshmallow fights. Some jokester even threw a few marshmallows into the campfire, the fluffy sweet turning black, the insides bubbling out in a mass of white and brown goo as it swelled. "Ewww!" could be heard from most of the females, while the boys started shouting and throwing anything they could get their hands on, that could burn, into the fire.

Eventually, they were all sent off to their tents to sleep, Iruka having checked the safety of their tents while they were playing 'Capture the Flag'. All of them passed the requirements. The teacher then retreated to his own tent and drifted into a light sleep, halfway between waking and slumber in case something went wrong.

* * *

><p>The two had intended on staying up, talking late into the night, but Kiba had fallen asleep the moment his head hit the pillow. Naruto stared at the walls of the tent, jumping at any slight sound, hoping it was Shiro. By the time it struck midnight, Naruto got up. He threw on a shirt before exiting the tent as quietly as he could, his feet not making the slightest susurrus in the 'ground sheet'. He slipped on his zori and ran off into the forest to search for Shiro, heading to the place he last saw the tiger. He ran deeper into the forest, the night serene. The wind whistled in his ears as he ran, the trees lined in silver. Shadows danced on the forest floor and every sight, smell and sound came into focus. He dashed through each clearing, finally giving up and heading back, only to realise he was lost. "If I keep going right, I might be able to get out," Naruto muttered, heading off to the right, only to move further and further away from the campsite.<p>

A flash of white caught his eye, and he burst into a small clearing. There was a dais placed right in the centre, a small white figure shivering on it. "Shiro?" Naruto approached the figure. It was indeed Shiro, bound to the dais. "Shiro! How did you get here?" Naruto whispered. Shiro didn't answer. Naruto then noticed that his eyes were closed. He pulled Shiro off the dais, and was sent flying, Shiro in his arms. A shadow lashed out, closing the distance between them. Naruto scrambled to his feet and ran, the trees a blur. He was very aware of the presence that got closer and closer by the second.

* * *

><p>In the tent, Kiba awoke. He then shook Hinata and Sasuke awake. "Where's Naruto?"<p>

"Who cares? The idiot probably just went out for a pee, that's all," Sasuke shrugged.

"H-his s-sleeping b-bag's c-cold. H-he h-hasn't b-been i-in i-it f-for a-at l-least a-an h-hour," Hinata said, a hand on the crumpled sleeping bag. "Wh-where a-are y-you g-going?"

"To alert sensei," Kiba said, halfway out of the tent. Sasuke and Hinata got up, following their team leader to their sensei's tent in the next clearing over. Naruto ran through the forest, cackling whipping through the wind as branches smacked his face.

"Run, little piggy, run!" the shadow chuckled menacingly, slashing at Naruto as he stumbled through the thicket. The shadow was toying with him, Naruto realised. A figure appeared before him, "Boo!" Naruto winced as steel bit into his flesh, carving out a solid red line across his chest. He slipped away from the man, the trees looking gnarled and menacing now, the shadows dancing across the forest floor. Any of them could have been his assailant. The knife ran across his skin again, slashing his sleeve as he hurtled into a clearing. He heaved a mental sigh of relief as he spotted a tent. Hopefully, it was Iruka-sensei's. He stumbled into the tent, only to find it empty. He panicked again. He knew that the shadow was after his life. The man had come close to stabbing him many times. Gashes littered his body from the dagger that the shadow wielded, one dangerously close to his heart. The blond ran out of the tent, only to be confronted by the shadow.

"Wh-what do you want?" Naruto tried to muster up some bravado, only for his voice to come out in a squeak.

"The sacrifice wants to know. The sacrifice wants to know! Oh, the sacrifice is fun, fun!" a childish voice squealed.

"Sacrifice no want be sacrifice. You understand?" Naruto tried reasoning, pronouncing his words slowly.

"Sacrifice is funny! Sacrifice's blood tastes so good! Karasu wants more!" the shadow licked the blade, swiping up every last drop. "But Karasu's master says needs boy," Karasu looked conflicted, sucking his fingers and savouring every last drop of the scarlet liquid.

"Why does he need me?" Naruto asked cautiously, backing to the corner of the tent, trying to buy time by keeping Karasu talking.

"Sacrifice doesn't know what he is! Doesn't know his value! Very well. Karasu tell! Sacrifice die later anyway," Karasu chuckled darkly. "Master wants your blood. Wants your animalis' too! Legend says that if you drink from both the hominum and the animalis on the night when anima blood runs high, the drinker becomes immortal! Master wants immortality. Wants knowledge too! Wants every jutsu this world has to offer!" Karasu twirled delightedly.

"Like Faust?" Naruto raised an eyebrow, his hand slowly going for a steel peg. Obviously, Karasu like to talk. He was confident Naruto was going to die.

Karasu shot forward, his face inches from the blond's. He could smell the rot and decay. Death, on the man's breath. "Yes, like Faust. Only, if you have the right anima pair, will there be no repercussions, little boy. If he drank from me and Kuro, he would live every day of his life, languishing in nightmares and spending every waking hour in unimaginable pain. Physical and mental. Oh, no. When he heard his competitor was going to have baby, he wait. Competitor and wife, both anima. Now, child, anima. But child's anima must be special. Yes, yes," Karasu slashed at Naruto's neck, missing the jugular by a few centimetres. He lapped it up like a kitten would lap up milk. "The moment moon comes out, sacrifice must be killed. No sooner, no later." Karasu cackled and turned towards the moon, obscured by the clouds, taking his eyes off Naruto. A grave mistake. You never take your eyes off of Konoha's most unpredictable ninja. Or ninja-in-training as it were.

The boy bent down quietly and tugged the peg out of the ground, sliding it out gently, stepping on the rope to stop the tent from collapsing. The rope slackened before snapping back, taut, the weight of the tent pulling from under Naruto's foot. A breeze blew past, the clouds moving away from the moon. 'Wait for it. 3… 2… 1!' Karasu snapped his body back to receive a 3kg peg of solid steel right through his heart. Naruto felt bones snap beneath the peg, putting his whole body weight behind the peg and driving it as deep as he could. Sinew broke apart as the peg drove through the heart and out the back, bursting out of his body in an explosion of red which looked black in the darkness. Karasu died instantly.

Naruto leant into the dead man's body, breathing heavily as the adrenalin wore off. He looked up and saw the light leave the man's eyes. The magnitude of what he'd just done hit him like a wrecking ball. He let go of the peg and stared blankly as the man's body fell to the floor with a lifeless thud. The moon was finally revealed in all its glory, shining light down on the clearing. Naruto stared at his hands, tainted by another human's blood. They glistened scarlet in the silvery light, slick and cold. Despite all that, he felt an odd sense of detachment. He hunted down and killed smaller animals. He'd been the prey, but he'd turned around and dominated over his predator. Like the rabid Easter Bunny.

Naruto sat in the clearing. The hours dragged by and all was calm again until Iruka burst into the clearing, followed by his three team mates. "Naruto! Where…" Iruka trailed off when he saw the dead body. Hinata stifled a gasp before fainting. Kiba ran into the bushes to puke as Sasuke turned away. Iruka ran over to Naruto and turned him away from the body before enveloping him in a hug. "It's okay. I understand that that was your first kill. At such a young age too. Just let it all out."

Naruto just blinked at his teacher, "What do you mean, sensei?"

"I know you're traumatised, so just cry if you have to. I'll be here for you."

"What for?"

"I know your first kill can be very traumatic. Just take your time to get used to it. It's okay to be scared."

"You mean him? It was kill or be killed. I chose kill. It was survival of the fittest," Naruto smiled eerily at his sensei.

"Naruto, you're scaring me."

**A/N: I don't study latin, so if there's something wrong, please put it in a review or PM me. I had to use Google Translate. n00b right? XD (Inside joke)I'd love to see people reviewing. It keeps me going. So please please please review! Ouch, my arm!**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Erm… Sorry I take so long to update. It's the fifth week of school, and we have exams. Sucks. xd I really want to know what you think about this story. Please review!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Vocaloid.**

Chapter 7: Open house+T&I

"Naruto, you're scaring me," Iruka pulled away, his arms still on the boy's shoulders, shaking. The blond just smiled, a ghost of innocence on his lips before vanishing entirely. The trees rustled as wind howled through the clearing, a dark shape flitting liquidly away into the dark forest. Iruka took a deep, shaky breath, "You're sure you're okay?" Naruto nodded insistently, a circlet of gold framing icy blue eyes.

* * *

><p>That had been two days ago and now was the end of school. They'd had their first trap-setting class, and Naruto had managed to trap even the teachers, refusing to let them down until Iruka came upon them and helped them out of the seal-reinforced traps. Iruka cast a worried glance in the blond's direction, who was sprawled out on the desk, chatting with his little group made up of Shikamaru, Chouji, Kiba, Sakura, Ino and Hinata, as if nothing had happened. There was an unspoken agreement between the five to never talk about it. Iruka had gently questioned Naruto about what had happened, and the boy had come clean with him about what the man had said. He disposed the body before going to the Sandaime and asking him about Anima. The old man had shrugged and denied any knowledge about it. He wasn't lying. "We'll be having our annual open house in a week's time," Iruka said, grabbing his students' attention. Open house was the long-awaited day for most of them. It was the day they got to show off and have fun. "We'll have auditions for a singing competition and a dance competition in two days' time. The finals will be on open house day, to entertain the parents. There will be prizes for winning these competitions. Also, there is a triple station competition. Participants have to be in teams of six to seven. These teams will have to work together to get through the obstacle course component we'll have set out. It'll be harder than the ones you've been doing up until now, so it's impossible for you to do it solo. There will also be other competitions, so please sign up if you're interested." This got the students whispering.<p>

"Hey, Hinata! You should really join that dance competition," Kiba shouted, grinning.

"I-I c-can't!" Hinata stuttered.

"Oh, come on! Have more confidence in yourself, Hinata! You can dance beautifully! No one can compare to you!" Naruto grinned.

"Y-You r-really th-think s-so?" Hinata turned scarlet.

"I know so!" Naruto said.

"Hey, wanna join the triple station competition together? We have enough people," Shikamaru tilted his head to face them.

"Kiba, you should totally join the singing competition!" Nodoka popped out of nowhere. The brown haired girl was the one to give Kiba his first love letter, and also one of his most persistent fans.

Kiba made a sound of frustration.

"I know, right?" Kurumi materialised next to Nodoka, and they exchanged high fives. The rest of Kiba's fan club arrived and started babbling breathlessly, urging the poor boy to join.

"I really pity Kiba, but it's his fault for having such a good singing voice," Chouji mused, stuffing chips into his mouth.

Kiba's fan club dispersed, leaving a ragged looking Inuzuka behind. He collapsed onto the table.

"I'm joining the singing competition," the boy sighed, before looking at Naruto, pleading with his eyes.

"I'm joining too! We can go to the audition together! Let's go put our names in now!" Sakura and Ino shouted in unison before dragging the Inuzuka away. Naruto shrugged and trotted after the three to save the Inuzuka. They strode through the corridors to the general office to submit their names.

"What song should I sing?" Kiba pondered, chewing the butt of his pencil. Ino and Sakura had already submitted their forms and gone to join the gang outside the school.

"How about a song to mark your stupidity?" Naruto joked.

"Good idea! How about, Triple Baka!" Kiba scribbled the name down and tossed the form into the box.

"I was just joking! And don't you need three people? Isn't that why it's called Triple Baka?" Naruto hissed at his friend.

"But it's a nice song, and who cares about the Triple anyway, the other two don't do anything much," Kiba brushed him off.

"And who do you think is going to sing?" Naruto asked, tapping his foot impatiently.

"Me, of course. I'll just burst their eardrums, get disqualified, and go on my merry way," Kiba's voice wavered, uncertain. Naruto sighed.

"I'll help you this time, but we'll split the prize," Naruto bargained.

"Deal," Kiba and Naruto brought their hands up and clasped them together firmly.

* * *

><p>Two days later found Naruto crammed in a dusty air vent. Grey particles rising in choking clouds every time he moved. After one eye-watering hour, Kiba finally entered the audition room. "Finally!" Naruto whispered under his breath.<p>

"Tell me your name, age, and song you're going to sing," a black haired academy teacher said, his monotone voice buzzing in the blond's brain. This man could put even a geriatric man to sleep!

"Inuzuka Kiba, 9 years old. I'll be singing… uh… Triple Baka," Kiba faltered, glancing helplessly around the barren room.

"Well? Sing," the man put his elbows on the desk and laced his fingers together, resting his chin on the formation.

He stared, intimidating, at Kiba, causing both boy and dog to break out in cold sweat.

"Ki ga tsukeba monitaa no mae de ohayo  
>shiranai aida ni nemuke arawareta<p>

Isogashii no ni amaenagara yoseru  
>kotoba ni sasoware<br>Kimi wa jitsu ni baka da naa  
>Honki de tsuraretaa" Naruto sang from the air vent.<p>

The teacher sat up straighter now, listening intently to the song. By the time the song ended, the academy teacher's face shone like the sun, with a slightly dazed grin slapped on. "The results will be pinned in the foyer so go check it out! Bye!" the man waved cheerily. Kiba scrambled out of the room, surprised at the sudden one-eighty in the man's attitude. Naruto backed slowly out of the air vent, coughing slightly. He pressed his body to the floor of the vent, listening for any signs of the teacher, in case he was found out. All he heard was, "Baka, baka, baka, nani ga koko made anata o ugokasu no?" The blond heaved a small sigh of relief and shimmied his way out, silent as the night.

* * *

><p>It was another two days' wait when the results appeared on the board. Nodoka squealed incessantly when she saw the list. "Kiba-kun! You're sooo awesome! You got in!" rang in the Inuzuka's ear all day.<p>

"I got in! I got in!" Sakura felt joy swell in her heart as she caught a glimpse of her name on the list.

"I got in too, you know," Ino said.

"Hinata-chan! You made it into the finals for dance! Way to go!" Naruto called the Hyuuga over to the board.

She fainted.

* * *

><p>On the actual day of the open house, the school was buzzing with energy. Parents streamed in. The students demonstrated their throwing techniques, the parents congratulating their children with sloppy kisses, much to their embarrassment. "Okay, everybody choose a partner. You'll be sparring," Iruka instructed his class. Naruto paired up with Hinata, the Hyuuga heiress throwing furtive glances at her father, who was staring stony-faced at her.<p>

"Don't worry, Hinata! Just hit me!" Naruto grinned. Hinata stared at the blond in horror just as Iruka gave the signal to start. Hinata went into her Jyuuken stance, her frame rigid and hesitant. Naruto settled into an unfamiliar stance, his eyes narrowing into menacing slits as the warmth in them evanesced, leaving behind only the cold eyes of a hawk. Hinata flinched before holding her body even stiffer than before. The blond shot forward fluidly, striking at the Hyuuga. Hinata gasped and dodged, reflex making her lash out and hit his arm.

"I'm sorry," she squeaked, seeing her friend wince.

"Stay focused, and loosen up your body," the blond whispered into her ear as he countered with a punch. Hinata stared dumbly at the fist which had just missed her face by a few centimetres.

"Naruto?" she whispered. He seemed like a different person, far from the blond who had healed her leg and strung up the teachers to make her laugh. A kick forced her out of her thoughts and she dodged. Looking into the blond's now white rimmed eyes, a fire of determination sparked to life inside her, and she fought back with all her might for the very first time. She hit the blond's arm again, debilitating it.

"Good," Naruto remarked.

Hinata's eyes widened, before launching into a high speed assault, jabbing at the blond's chakra points with deadly precision. She fought her own way, her attacks flowing like water in a stream. The blond dodged the attacks, before getting struck forcefully in the leg.

He was floored.

Hinata panted breathlessly, staring at her crush.

Naruto rolled onto his back and grinned at the Hyuuga.

"You were amazing, Hinata! I didn't know you could fight like that!" Hinata's lips twitched into a small smile as the boy complimented her.

She chanced a peek at her father, the man giving a slight nod of acknowledgement.

She decided that it was the happiest day in her life.

She helped the blond to his feet and the two walked over to join Kiba.

"You go, girl!" Kiba hooted. "Now all we have left is the dance competition for you, the singing competition for me, Sakura and Ino, and the tri-station for all of us."

Ino burst from the stage and ran towards them. "What are you two doing here? The singing competition's started ages ago! My turn just passed, and after Sakura's Kiba! The dancers also have to go backstage now!" Ino jabbed at the makeshift platform.

The four immediately sped towards the platform. By the time they got there, Sakura was already on the stage, singing the final ballad of 'Voice'. The moment Sakura stopped, she received thunderous applause. She trounced backstage, sticking her tongue out at Ino. "Next is, Inuzuka Kiba," The same man from the auditions announced blithely over the microphone, the dazed smile still plastered on his face. Kiba took the microphone from the man with trembling fingers and brought it to his lips.

It was a wireless microphone.

Naruto grabbed a similar one off a bench and started singing.

"Baka baka baka hoka ni yaru koto madamada aru n ja nai?" Naruto sang, back to the stage, when Hinata walked to the back of the stage after changing into a scarlet dress and saw him. She stood, mesmerised, until the song was over. After a short-lived moment of silence, a roar that was enough to bring the roof down went up.

Hinata turned robotically and scampered away, unsure of what to do. "While the judges decide the winner, we'll be having the finals for dancing. First up, Hyuuga Hinata," the man said. Hinata stepped into the middle of the stage, her body as stiff as a block of ice.

"You can do it, Hinata!" broke the silence. She whipped her head to the side to see a familiar blond and his tiger. The music struck up, and she poised herself as loosely as she could in front of the crowd, which just, made her stiffer.

"Go, Hinata!" she turned to the audience and saw the rest of the gang, shouting and cheering. She focused on them and begun to dance, her body moving in perfect harmony. A fire blazed in her every step, as she felt the beat resonate in her body, guiding her every movement. An inferno of passion flickering in the black backdrop, yet calm and fluid. Finally, she launched herself into the air, a single drop of blood in the depths, as she twirled in mid-air, her dress flaring out around her like a rose in full bloom. She landed with all the grace of a swan. The music ended, leaving her panting, but satisfied with her performance.

The audience stared at her slack-jawed, before exploding into applause that could have rivalled the one for Naruto. She scurried off the stage, the applause following her all the way to the changing room. There were not as many dancers as there were singers, so by the time she managed to struggle out of the dress, they were through with the competition. "While the judges decide the winner of the dance competition, we'll announce the winners for the singing competition," the black haired academy teacher announced, energy filling his tone. Though the onlookers had absolutely nothing to do with the competition aside from the parents of the competitors, they held their breath, silently rooting for the performers they liked best.

"In third place is…" the teacher trailed off to build up suspense. A drum roll flowed through the crowd. "Tsubasa Gen!" he shouted.

The crowd cheered as Gen was swept onto the stage. "In second place is…" the man said when the cheers had died down. "Oh, it seems we have two!" the man stared at the cue card in his hand with amusement. "Yamanaka Ino and Haruno Sakura!" Ino and Sakura stared each other down as they stomped onstage, sparks flying from their venomous gazes, as if trying to electrocute each other with them.

"In first place is…" the academy teacher looked ready to explode. A drum roll floated through the audience once more. "Idiot!" the man shouted. The crowd exchanged confused glances, unsure of what to make of the 'Idiot' outburst. "He sang Triple Baka! Baka means Idiot, get it?" the man was met with blank stares. "In first place is Inuzuka Kiba," the man then announced, oblivious to the fact that his joke wasn't well received.

Kiba was ushered forcefully, stumbling onto the stage. They were each presented with a scroll and ushered off the stage. "What did you get, what did you get?" the gang pressed excitedly. Kiba ripped open the scroll, to find arrays inscribed inside.

"What is this?" Kiba turned the scroll upside down.

"It's a scroll on sealing!" Naruto shouted excitedly, yanking the scroll out of his friend's hands.

"What's so interesting about a bunch of squiggles? They look like someone's bad handwriting," Kiba commented, seeing the blond go starry-eyed. (*o*) Naruto punched the Inuzuka.

"That's rubbish! I made those flags of ours vanish into thin air a week ago using seals! They're awesome and you know it!"

"Whatever. You can have it. It looks boring," Kiba dismissed the blond's proclamation.

"Thanks, Kiba!" Naruto broke into a toothy grin.

"Now for the winners of the dance competition!" Iruka took over. "In third place is Yuki Kisa," he said, not one for theatrics. Kisa grumbled past the gang about not getting first place. She trudged gloomily onto the stage.

"In second place is Resu Kurumi." Kurumi triumphantly strutted onto the stage, winking at Kiba as she went.

"In first place is Hyuuga Hinata!" Hinata looked shell-shocked.

She stood, not comprehending what she'd heard.

"Go, Hinata! You won!" Ino pushed her towards the stage. Hinata walked slowly towards the stage as if in a trance, looking on with unseeing eyes as she received a scroll too. She floated down from the stage, still out of it, until Ino and Sakura engulfed her in a group hug, squealing.

"You won! You won first place!" and "Open it up! Open it up!" could be heard from the small group.

Hinata opened the scroll with shaky hands to see a stack of paper pop out and flutter to the floor like snow white birds. The seven friends gathered up the pieces of paper. "What are these?" Kiba held one up to the sun. Nothing mystical happened.

"They're chakra papers," Sakura said.

"How'd you know?" Chouji asked.

"I read the scroll," Sakura said, holding out the scroll for them to see.

"Just channel chakra into the paper to find out your elemental affinity," Sakura read.

"Cool! I wanna try! Can we, Hinata?" Naruto asked enthusiastically.

Hinata nodded.

"Thanks, Hinata!" Kiba said, taking one from the thick stack in Hinata's hands and channelling chakra into it.

The paper crumbled to dust.

"What's that mean?" Kiba asked.

"Earth," Sakura replied simply, not taking her eyes off the scroll.

"My turn," Naruto grabbed a sheet and it split in two before crumpling.

"What's that?" Naruto turned to Sakura.

"I can't find it!" Sakura looked through the scroll again.

"Whaddaya mean?" Naruto asked.

"It says that the paper's supposed to crumple when you have lightning affinity, but it's only supposed to split in half when you have an affinity for wind," Sakura said, thumbing through the scroll again.

"Maybe I have both! Cool!" Naruto slipped the two crumpled pieces of paper into his pocket.

"Uh… guys? I don't want to spoil your fun, but the tri-station starts in a few minutes. We should get going to the field now," Shikamaru drawled, not looking anxious at all.

"Really?" Sakura asked, craning her neck to check a nearby clock.

"It's 3:59 PM right now. The tri-station starts at 4," Naruto answered her.

"Run?" Chouji asked.

"Run," Ino nodded, before they broke into a run towards the field, managing to make it there just in time.

There was a large crowd of students and parents, with a few teachers mixed in. "Okay, first is the obstacle course, second is a component where you'll have to transport the water in tank A to tank B in a set amount of time using what you're given. The last station will be to see who can catch Tora first. She's loose, again, this time in the forests, so you'll have to try and catch her. Normally, this is done by Gennin teams and their Jounin senseis, but we have academy teachers stationed around the forest and you'll be in groups of seven, not three. Also, all the other Gennin have either passed the Chunin exams, are taking a break, or…" Iruka trailed off, not wanting to say that some, however miniscule the amount, had quit being shinobi. "All of you line up behind the yellow line."

A horn went off and the teams set off running.

They arrived at a small building, and, not seeing anywhere else to go, opened the door and ducked inside.

"I can't see a thing! It's pitch black in here!" Sakura whispered.

"Oof! Was that a… wall? I think we're in a… maze?" Ino's voice came from the left as the soft susurrus of cloth could be heard a she got up.

"So we have to work together and get out of the maze?" a voice came from the far right.

It was unmistakably Sasuke's.

"We're all in the same maze?" Chouji whispered.

"I-I th-think s-so," Hinata muttered.

"Wait a second," Naruto muttered, and they heard a few soft strokes of a brush, before a light flared up on his hand.

"Still think they're just squiggles?" Naruto asked Kiba, his tone mocking.

"Less talking, more walking," Kiba grunted, herding them all down a newly discovered pathway.

"Wait. I remember that, outside, on the door, there was a hint. It said you have to be blind to get out of the maze." Sakura said.

"Meaning?" Kiba raised an eyebrow.

"I don't know. Well, blind people can't see, so let's feel around for something," Chouji suggested.

After a few seconds, Hinata called out, "I-I th-think I f-found s-something."

"Great job, Hinata!" the others trooped towards where Hinata was at.

"They're… arrows?" Sakura stared at the supposed hint. There was a red arrow jutting out of a panel, pointing to the corridor at the front, a green one pointing to the corridor to their left, and a squiggly yellow one pointing to the corridor running right.

"So we take the corridor that the green one points to because green means go, right?" Ino said.

"No. Remember, you have to be blind. Blind people can't see, much less see colours, so they would use their sense of touch. And the yellow one would be the only one whose shape stands out, because it's different. We follow the yellow one," Shikamaru concluded. They ran down the corridor, and into another room. They found another panel and followed a squiggly green one. Finally, they found themselves climbing steps to a small room. They opened the door and found a large lion asleep at the foot of the door, blocking their way. Beyond it were the tanks of water, with a marker to show the level of water. It heaved up and down steadily.

"It's asleep," Ino mouthed.

"N-no. I-It's n-not r-real," Hinata said.

"How can you tell?" Ino asked.

"L-look," she put her arms around the lion's head and threw it back.

All that was left of the lion was a contraption that released timed breaths of air, making it seem like the lion was breathing. Sleeping.

"Th-they'd h-have t-to s-set th-this u-up a d-day b-before th-the a-actual e-event t-to m-make s-sure e-evrything i-is r-ready b-by t-today, a-and i-if th-the l-lion's b-been t-trapped h-here since y-yesterday, i-it w-would h-have g-gotten th-thirsty a-and d-drank s-some o-of th-the w-water, b-but th-the w-water l-level i-is th-the s-same a-as th-the m-marker s-so…" Hinata trailed off and poked her fingers together nervously.

"You're amazing, Hinata!" Ino said as they walked towards the tank.

"N-no," Hinata said, looking down at her feet.

"Look up, and don't keep poking your fingers together like that," Sakura gently lifted her head and pulled her hands to her sides.

"U-um…" Hinata stuttered, uncomfortable.

"There are only a few cups here," Chouji said, lifting up the cups.

"Seven total."

"We're supposed to get all the water over before we can go catch this Tora, right?" Ino said, pushing Hinata towards the tank marked 'A' where the rest were. The timer above the tanks started counting down.

"We're supposed to use whatever we have in this room, but all we have are some titchy thimble cups," Kiba complained, using the cup to scoop out some water, only for the water to come trickling out slowly form a hole at the bottom. "And they've got holes in them too!"

"Whatever we have in this room? Then we can use the fake lion, right?" Sakura pointed to the contraption and the skin.

"The inside is made of latex and those water resistant synthetic fur. It's water proof. I think we can use this," Ino said, dragging the lion skin over to the tank.

"Maybe we can also use the large hose there for a siphon," Chouji said, pointing to the contraption, and when he received blank stares, added, "My mom owns a few fishes. She has to clean out their tank by using a siphon, a.k.a, that large hose there."

"Okay. Chouji, you do the si-whatever thing, Ino, Hinata and Sakura will form a human chain and transfer the water to each others' cups into the tank. Naruto, Shikamaru and I'll use the lion skin to collect the water and dump it into the tank. Got it?" Kiba asked, before getting a round of nods. They set about transferring the water, the liquid sloshing around like a metronome as they shouted encouragements to one another. They managed to relocate the water into the tank with a few minutes to spare, and the water level was only a few centimetres below the mark. They raced out the door to find Sasuke's group already running into the forest, Kisa staying behind just long enough to throw them a victorious smirk.

"Good job, guys. You're the second group to complete the first two tasks. I'm going in to check that you really have transferred all the water," Iruka said, before disappearing through the door.

When he emerged, he said, "You pass the second station. But the third station is a little harder. You'll be competing in the forest with all the other groups to catch Tora."

"What's a Tora, sensei?" Sakura asked.

"A cat. A demon cat. I know how it looks like," Naruto answered in Iruka's stead.

"Nii-san told me." This got the quirk of an eyebrow from Iruka, seeing as Naruto had no family but he didn't press the issue.

"Once you've found Tora, you're to report back here. Now go!" Iruka nodded at the forest.

The seven broke into a run, dashing into the forest. They were soon engulfed in large green foliage and canopy as they searched for Tora. Soon, a flash of pink and flustered shouts came from their left.

"Get it!"

"Somebody, hit it!"

"We can't hit it, it's Lady Shijimi's cat!"

"I don't care!"

"It's too fast!"

"Someone just grab the damn thing!"

A brown blur flew past them and they chased after it, Sasuke's team trundling after them.

"What do we do now?" Kiba asked.

"Naruto, you're good with traps, right? Set one up and ensnare it, then talk to it. Ino, use the Shintenshin on the cat. I know you can't talk when you're in an animal's body, but Naruto can understand. Probably. Chouji and Kiba, you'll be the ones to chase the cat to the trap in a pincer formation," Shikamaru instructed.

"Then what about Hinata?" Naruto asked.

"She'll be the one to locate the cat."

"What about you and Sakura?"

"I'll be the back up, Sakura'll run for help if either of us is hurt."

"Got it. Hinata, can you see Tora anywhere?" Ino asked.

"Byakugan!" Hinata said after a set of hand seals, before scanning the area.

"There!" she pointed in a seemingly random direction. The five sprinted off in that direction, the other two staying behind.

They finally found Tora, lazily sun tanning on a rock, cleaning herself with her tongue. Naruto began to set up the traps, working furiously. Kiba and Chouji then charged at the cat. Tora jumped in fright, before running in the opposite direction from Naruto. Hinata ran ahead of it and scared it into going towards the blond. Tora yowled in fright as it felt something close around its leg and the ground slid out from under its paws. The cat dangled from the rope, yowling and hissing, trying to cut himself free, before it hit a black marking on the tree and another rope lashed out and bound his other paw. The cat screeched in surprise. Ino took the opportunity and performed Shintenshin. The cat jerked, before falling limp. It opened its eyes again and stayed unmoving, docile, while Ino's body slumped to the floor. Kiba cut the ropes and gently set the cat on the ground.

"This body is tiny! I can barely see my legs, but I didn't know this cat was so fit," Ino babbled.

"It runs from Gennin nearly every day. What would you expect?" Naruto shrugged as they exited the forest to see Sasuke's team, minus Kisa, with Tora, running towards Iruka. They broke into a run too, reaching the teacher at the same time.

"Sasuke's team brought Kisa in a henge of Tora," Iruka announced, causing the team members to go red in the face, their sensei having seen through the henge. "But it passes. The condition was to bring in Tora. I never said you had to bring in the real one." The team heaved a small sigh of relief, while Naruto's group stiffened. "But bringing in the real Tora is a plus. Naruto's team wins," Iruka announced. "Please gather back at the starting point while we go rescue those less unfortunate from the maze and forest." The fourteen children trooped back to the field while Iruka gathered the remaining participants. Not long after, a stream of students poured out of the maze building, Iruka behind them, ushering them to the exit.

* * *

><p>All in all, it was a great day. They'd all won something, which was incredibly hard to believe, and they'd gotten off with no homework for the day while the others had to finish an essay about something very dry, like the uses of different herbs found in the forests found around Konoha. They walked home together, everyone stopping off at their own houses. Naruto decided to take a stroll around the park, so he set off down the footpath, Shiro by his side. It was dark by the time he got to the park, but he felt at peace.<p>

And suddenly, he felt nothing at all.

When he finally opened his eyes, the world slowly spun into focus. He found himself in an uncomfortable metal chair with a crick in his neck. The walls around him echoed with the silent screams of the past inhabitants and he shuddered as the smell of blood wafted into his nose. The door slowly creaked open to reveal a purple haired lady in a beige trench coat. "Hello, Gaki," she smirked sadistically. The lady sat down opposite him and they stared each other down before she threw her legs up on the table and leaned back in her chair. "My name's Anko. Remember that, squirt," she said. He didn't reply. "Okay, down to business. Do you know why you were brought here?" Anko asked, her voice almost taunting. Naruto shook his head as he analysed the room, searching for a way out. "The Sandaime gave me permission to ask you a few questions. He told me to question you in a more… cosy environment, but I don't coddle. First question. Do you remember the man you killed? Karasu?" Anko's eyes narrowed. Naruto nodded. "Do you know why people hire him?" Anko asked. Naruto shook his head. "Because, even though he's a mere common bandit, he's not really that common at all. He works for the money, but once the cash has been laid down, he doesn't ever disclose the details, and he always gets the job done," Anko said. "What I want to know is how you got him to start singing like a little birdy."

"I don't know," Naruto finally spoke, seeing no way out. The door was blocked by Anko and, since the room was small, she was leaning on it. Besides, he could hear someone shuffling just outside the door. There were also no windows and, most importantly, no potentially dangerous items. "You're not lying," she said. It was more a statement than a question. "Just great. The kid doesn't know anything. Well, the real question I wanted to ask you is if you wanna be sort of like my understudy. You manage to squeeze information out of Karasu, and effortlessly too," she scratched the back of her head.

"Okay," Naruto said.

"Are you for real? Just like that? No 'I can't torture people, I'll wet my pants' and shit?" Anko asked.

"Huh?" Naruto said cleverly. "Hey, Ibiki! You heard that? Gaki'd probably be a killer interrogator," Anko shouted out the door. She let her seat fall back onto four legs. The door opened, revealing a large bear of a man with a bandana tied around his head, and scars on his face. He was wearing a trench coat too.

What was with interrogators and trench coats?

"You're speaking too soon, and I thought you wanted him to try interrogating the new prisoner before saying anything, like 'My name's Anko. Remember that, squirt'," Ibiki quoted.

"Spoilsport," Anko pouted.

"The prisoner's in the next room. Do you want him to or not? He's just a child after all," Ibiki said. "He might end up like you."

"Hey, I didn't end up bad! I'm sexy, and I'm single!" Anko shouted indignantly. "Hell yeah, I want him to try. He managed to crack that clam, Karasu! I wanna see what he'll do with the prisoner." Naruto didn't even have the chance to protest as he was jostled into the next room, where a man sat stoically in a metal chair, similar to the one he sat in not even minutes ago.

"You don't have to if you're too scared," Anko mocked, seeing his face.

This set the blond off, "I'll get him talking in three minutes!"

"Oh yeah? I'll hold you to that," Anko smirked.

Naruto then walked up to the man, child-like, before sitting down on the chair opposite the man, his eyes sparkling with all the innocence only a child would have. "They send a little kid to interrogate me? They've gone off their rockers," the man snorted.

Naruto's face split into a grin going from ear to ear, but this wasn't his usual happy grin. This grin held a promise of pain and death, as the childishness ghosted away. His eyes sparkled with a sadistic glee and seemed to glow an eerie red under the lights. The man recoiled slightly. "Heh. You don't scare me," the man said, but his body told them otherwise as he started to shudder slightly, sweat building on his forehead.

Naruto walked over to a fridge designed specifically for the interrogators, and pulled out a small vial filled with purple liquid. "You're an escaped convict from Kusa, correct?" Naruto said softly, his tone taunting. "Then you should know about the myth of The Poison," Naruto continued, the prisoner's eyes widening.

"It's stronger than any other poison. Even cyanide or aconite couldn't hope to match it, and it comes from a single. Small. Plant," the blond smiled as he slowly uncorked the vial.

"They're called Dragon's Tears. It's so slow and painful that even a dragon, the toughest creature to ever walk the earth, would weep in pain. And the thing about pain," Naruto grinned, child-like innocence reappearing again. "Is that it hurts." The man jerked away in the metal chair, but he was too tightly bound to escape.

As the vial was brought near his mouth, the smell of grapes was caught by his nose. "Then why does it smell like grape juice?" the man asked, smirking as he slowly regained confidence.

"Have you ever heard of a wolf in sheep's clothing? You wouldn't ever know that this was a poison until it slips down your throat," a purple rivulet hovered on the brink of the vial, before the man finally cracked.

"Okay, okay! I'll talk! Just get that thing away from me!" the man shouted, the fear showing in his eyes. Naruto pulled the vial away, smirking as he corked it again. Anko stared, dumbfounded, before grinning. The kid would make a killer interrogator, once she'd taken him under her wing.

"I win," Naruto said, all traces of the sadistic child who'd interrogated the man vanishing into thin air.

"I'll take over from here. But first, give me back that vial. It's dangerous," Anko frowned.

"Actually, it is just grape juice," the blond whispered into her ear. Her eyes widened. She chuckled. "Dragon's Tears does exist, but it's so rare that it's almost a myth. Besides, it's colourless and odourless, not purple and smelling like grapes. I just poured a bit of the grape juice into an empty vial. I found both in the fridge." Naruto laid the vial in Anko's hand before leaving the room.

"You are officially my unofficial understudy," Anko said, before going to get answers out of the man.

**A/N: Happy Birthday to me! Well, belated anyway. I wanted to get this up yesterday, on my birthday, but I hadn't finished it yet. Now, on to my homework. Sigh...**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: I find I like updating this. I've kinda lost interest in my other story, but I will update it once the holidays start provided I don't have camp…**

Chapter 8: Angel Wings

"Good grief, Anko! What were you thinking? I gave you permission only to ask him a few questions, not stuff him in an interrogation cell and force the poor boy to interrogate the convict from Kusa!" the Sandaime's voice rose a pitch.

"He wanted to do it. Even bet that he could crack the guy in three minutes. Did it in one! Then again, the Kusa guy was a pussy," Anko mumbled the last bit.

"Please tell me you didn't do anything else catastrophically insane, like bring about the Armageddon" the old man sighed, burying his face in his hands and bracing himself for the worst.

"Good news is, I didn't bring about the end of the world, but I kinda took him as a sort-of apprentice," Anko muttered.

"You did what? I thought I heard you say that you 'took' him on as your apprentice," the Sandaime's voice was eerily calm.

"Yeah, but you should've seen him! He used grape juice to play with the guy's mind! Guy nearly pissed his pants when Naruto said it was Dragon's Tears poison, whatever that is," Anko said.

"ANKO!" the Sandaime bellowed.

"Hai?" Anko winced.

"Are we interrupting something?" a voice called from the door. The two ninjas in the room looked up to see a team of four standing in the doorway.

"No. Come on in," the old man said.

"We'll settle this later, Anko, but if that's what the boy really wants, I'm not going to stop him." Anko's face lit up, before she swaggered out of the room, victorious.

The Sandaime had always had a soft spot for the blond.

"Mission report," the Sandaime said, his tone turning brisk and professional.

* * *

><p>Naruto stared listlessly out the window as he tried to find his bearings on the topographical map. The window was open, and a cool breeze blew through it, ruffling the boy's hair. The blond closed his eyes and savoured the feeling when a familiar scent pervaded his nostrils. His eyes snapped open before he broke out in a toothy grin. "Found something particularly amusing?" Shikamaru lifted his head from the table to look at Naruto.<p>

"Nii-san's back," Naruto replied.

* * *

><p>"That's all for today. You have the rest of the day off," the Sandaime dismissed the team.<p>

"Hokage-sama, how's Naruto doing?" one of the members in the team asked.

"He's doing fine," the old man replied dismissively.

The man stared at the Hokage before turning to leave, his glasses glinting in the sunlight.

* * *

><p>The bird was perched innocently on the branch. Naruto's eyes were transfixed on it, one ear listening to his teacher drone on about the Third Ninja War, the other twitching frantically. The ones on either side of his head stayed still. His teeth ached and a pressure built up in his chest. His mind wandered as he stared at the bird. He yearned to feel the bird's warm neck in his jaw, the bones giving way beneath his teeth, fresh blood dribbling from his mouth. He could almost taste the coppery fluid, baring his teeth in animal delight before catching himself. His body shook with desire and he turned towards the wall, swiping up his sleeve and clamping his teeth over his arm. The feeling subsided as blood trickled down his throat. 'It's getting worse,' Naruto thought, dreading the day when his will alone wouldn't be enough to override the animalistic thoughts. He clawed or bit his arm at least once a day to subdue the urges to hunt, and they were getting harder to ignore. The wounds always healed overnight, which was a small mercy.<p>

"Are you okay?" Shikamaru asked, concern sparking in his lazy eyes.

"Yeah. Just a little tired," Naruto yawned, slipping his sleeve down.

Shikamaru nodded, doubt showing as he laid his head back down on the table. Naruto stared at the clock with anticipation, willing it to go faster so that he could meet his Nii-san after his month long C-ranker. He lost himself in thought as his sensei went through poisons, only half-listening. "Naruto, what is the fastest acting poison in existence?" Iruka asked, pointing at the board to provide a hint.

"Angel Wings," Naruto answered half-heartedly.

"Naruto, are you even listening? The answer was-" Iruka was cut off.

"No, Angel Wings is the fastest acting poison in existence. It's either ingested or administered into the bloodstream, but it can enter the blood stream many times faster than the average poison if ingested and attacks the heart and brain. It shuts both these organs down, leaving you dead before you even realise it. It's made from the ovaries of the plant, Angel Wings, where it gets its name. It's designed for instant kill and is not well known in Konoha because the source is found mostly in Iwa, Konoha's enemy. Even then, there is a very small amount of the plant and the poison will be ineffective if it's cultivated. Only wild ones can be used," Naruto snapped.

Iruka looked at the boy, stunned.

The rest of the class stared, slack jawed at the blond. "Shiro told me about it," Naruto held the tiger up by the armpits, the tiger looking bewildered. It was common knowledge that the boy could talk to the tiger, so Iruka just nodded.

"Dude! Your tiger's smarter than you!" Kiba shouted across the room, causing the rest of the class to burst into laughter.

Naruto blushed fiercely and sat down, gently setting Shiro down on the table. The bell trilled and the students filed out of the classroom, Shikamaru quirking an eyebrow at the blond before they joined the rest of the group.

"What was that about? Were you PMSing or something? You just shouted at sensei!" Ino asked.

"What's wet multiplied by wet?" Naruto asked cryptically.

"What?" Ino looked puzzled.

"Wrong! Wet squared!" Naruto shouted.

"Huh?" Kiba looked puzzled too.

"I'm going to go meet Nii-san. You guys wanna come along?" Naruto asked. The six just shrugged. Naruto dragged them through the streets towards training ground 7.

* * *

><p>"Nii-san!" Naruto shouted excitedly at the figure reading a scroll on the ground.<p>

"Naruto!" the figure got up as Naruto barrelled into him. "Oof!" the man felt the air leave his lungs, as well as the glasses from his face. The six friends just stared down at the two, a halo of silver hair spread out around them as Naruto got off the man. "Hi, Naruto. I got the book that you wanted," the man finally looked up and noticed the other six present on the grounds. "Hi. You six must be Naruto's friends. I really have to thank you all for keeping him in line while I was away. My name's Kabuto," the silver haired man extended a hand in greeting. Kiba took it and shook it.

"Inuzuka Kiba," the boy proclaimed, Akamaru barking.

"Pleased to meet you," Kabuto smiled.

"Think fast, Gaki!" a voice shouted. Kabuto tackled Shikamaru, Chouji, Sakura and Hinata to the floor. Naruto dragged Kiba and Hinata down with him. A kunai sailed over their heads and landed in the bushes.

The bush screamed out in pain.

"Anko-san!" Naruto shouted as a familiar mop of purple hair made its appearance.

"Umm… Did the bush just… scream?" Chouji asked. Whimpering sounds came from the bush.

"I think you hit someone, Anko-san," Sakura said.

The group pushed past the bush and found a familiar someone curled in a foetal position on the floor, a kunai embedded in the ground near her head, a graze on her cheek.

"Ami! Are you okay?" Naruto helped the girl up.

"This is bad. I coat all my kunai with poison. It's not lethal, but she'll need a hella lotta barf bags," Anko said.

As if to prove the interrogator's point, Ami turned away and vomited on the floor. Sweat beaded her forehead and her skin was pale. She shook violently and her skin was clammy.

Naruto whined and licked the wound on the girl's cheek, the girl blushing. "Naruto, what are you doing?" Kiba shouted hysterically, pulling the blond away from Ami.

"Hey! You can't just pull my Naruto away like that!" Ami shouted.

"Your Naruto? Since when was he yours?" Ino shouted.

"Stop it!" the blond screeched, forcing his hands up against his ears. Cold sweat threaded his hairline and trickled down past his temple. His eyes flashed gold, before it disappeared completely, leaving behind his usual cerulean. "I… I'll go… um… make an antidote," Naruto choked out, before running off.

"The medicine shop is just a short while away. Want me to call him back?" Kiba asked.

"No, this'll be good training for him," Kabuto smiled. "I've been teaching him how to make antidotes for mild poisons, but don't worry. I'll be supervising him." Kabuto strode off.

"Now what?" Sakura asked. Ami fell back onto the grass, before turning over and vomiting again.

"We stay here with Ami," Shikamaru said.

"Well, Gaki number 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7. It seems you've all got this under control. I'll just be going to meet the Hokage now. Tell the blond squirt to meet me at the T&I building at 9PM. Bye," Anko leapt away.

"She just ran away! How irresponsible is that?" Ino cried out.

* * *

><p>In the forest, a figure whipped through the trees, breaths coming in dogged pants and its eyes a feral gold. Something moved to the left and he stopped. A squirrel was on the ground, gathering nuts for consumption. The figure's panting promptly stopped, and it padded closer to the small animal. The squirrel started, but returned to nut gathering, and in that instant, its neck was snapped and it was quickly devoured. "Naruto!" a flash of silver ran towards the figure. He halted and stared at the blond, blood trickling from his mouth, canines bared, eyes flashing animalistic amber as a ravaged carcass lay on the ground beside him.<p>

The gold in his eyes evaporated and the blond looked away. He brought his knees towards his body and buried his face into his knees. "I'm a monster," he muttered, his words muffled.

"You're not, and you know that," Kabuto sat down beside the dejected blond.

"You're lying! We don't even know why this is happening. We don't even know _what's_ happening! And _you _know that!" Naruto shouted.

Kabuto tenderly laid a hand on the boy's head. "What is this?" Kabuto asked, gently nudging the boy's head.

"My head," Naruto snapped.

"Then what is this?" Kabuto closed one of Naruto's eyelids, his finger brushing a stray tear away.

"My eye," Naruto sniffed.

"What about this?" Kabuto pressed a hand to Naruto's chest.

"My chest, Pedobear," Naruto quipped.

Kabuto just smiled, "What's in your chest?"

"My… lungs?" Naruto looked puzzled.

"No silly, your heart."

"So?"

"What can you feel?"

"A heartbeat?"

"Exactly. Monsters don't have hearts, but you have one. And I don't see you having one thousand eyes, twenty heads, forty legs and sixty noses, so you're not a monster," Kabuto declared.

"What kind of monstrosity did you just describe?" Naruto tried to picture it in his head and failing.

"Whatever that came to mind, so don't think too much about it," Kabuto said, ruffling the boy's hair.

"Thanks, Nii-san," Naruto hugged the silver haired Gennin.

Kabuto returned the hug, his smile turning scheming behind the blond's back. He was one step closer to gaining immortality for his master. A pang of guilt and grief shot through him. Tears began to well in his eyes and he wiped them away. 'Why am I crying,' he wondered. He broke away from the hug, saying, "We'd better get an antidote ready. Ami's probably puking her guts up by now. Just try not to poison her instead. Remember what happened with the deer? You mixed up the plants and killed it instead of cure it."

"Hey, that was when I first started, okay! I couldn't tell the difference between a blade of grass and aconite!" Naruto shouted, getting up, followed by Kabuto. By the time they got back, Ami was already up and looking as perky as ever.

She even seemed well enough to take part in a screaming match with Ino and Sakura.

"What were you doing in the bush anyway?" Ino screeched.

"That's none of your business," Ami screamed, equally loud.

"It is our business if you're stalking us!" Sakura shouted.

"I wasn't stalking you two bimbos, I was stalking Na-" Ami quickly clapped her hands to her mouth.

Ino narrowed her eyes and smiled mockingly. "So you were stalking Naruto, huh? Looks like someone's got a crush."

"No, I was looking for… salt! NaCl 2," Ami covered.

"N-A-C-L-two, sounds nothing like what you just said," Sakura retorted. Ami growled.

"Well, it looks like the poison's worn off," Shikamaru informed.

'No, the poison doesn't wear off so fast. Is she just a fast healer like Naruto or…' Kabuto lost himself in his musings.

Hinata shifted uncomfortably like she'd been doing all morning.

"What's wrong, Hinata?" Naruto asked.

"I… I n-need your h-help. You… you k-know h-how t-to h-heal p-people r-right?" Hinata shifted nervously again.

Naruto nodded.

"W-Well, m-my m-mother j-just g-gave b-birth l-last n-night a-and I-I h-have a b-bay s-sister n-now, b-but, m-my m-mother g-got s-sick g-giving b-birth. I-I w-was w-wondering i-if y-you c-could h-help h-her," Hinata's voice degraded to a whisper.

"Why doesn't your father get other medics to help her? I'm not even qualified to help anyone. Healing your leg was a fluke," Naruto protested.

"N-No, i-it w-wasn't! B-But th-the o-other m-medics s-say th-that th-there's n-nothing th-they c-can d-do. Sh-She m-might d-die! I-I h-heard m-my f-father s-saying th-that!" Hinata said.

"If qualified expert medics can't help, then there's nothing I can do either. I really want to help you, but there's nothing I can do either," Naruto shook his head.

"P-Please! J-Just t-try!" Hinata pleaded.

"Fine, just a look, but I'm not going to do anything. I might make it worse," Naruto said.

"Th-Thank y-you, N-Naruto-k-kun!" Hinata said.

"Hey guys! Hinata's got a baby sister now! Wanna go over and see her?" Naruto shouted.

"Hell yeah!" Kiba said, and the ten trooped off to the Hyuuga estate.

Once there, Hinata led the group to the baby's room, while Kabuto and Naruto slinked off to her mother's room, having been given the directions.

"I think we were supposed to make a left just now," Naruto said.

"No, she said go straight," Kabuto argued.

"But we've been going straight for ages!" Naruto whined.

"Only if 'ages' means ten seconds," Kabuto rolled his eyes.

The sound of footsteps travelled up the hallway and towards them. "We're not supposed to be here! Quick! Hide!" Naruto dragged Kabuto into a nearby room.

The room was dimly lit and nearly empty.

The footsteps retreated down the corridor.

Then, a voice caught their attention, "Are you two Hinata's friends?" The two turned around and saw a dainty looking woman lying on a futon. She looked pale in the half light and they were sure that this was Hinata's mother.

"Good afternoon, Hyuuga-san," Naruto bowed and Kabuto did likewise. They scooted to her side as she began coughing.

"Well?" Kabuto asked, quirking an eyebrow.

Naruto shook his head, indicating that he didn't know.

"What have I taught you about poisons?" Kabuto whispered over the lady.

"You mean someone wants to off her?" Naruto whispered back, eyes wide.

"No, there's another kind of poison I haven't taught you about. It's when the body rejects… well… itself, basically. Mostly the bloodline, and it tears itself apart. Think of it as civil war in your body. It's very rare that this happens. One in a thousand, maybe more, chance of it. Why it would appear in a perfectly healthy Hyuuga, I wouldn't know," Kabuto said.

"How could the expert medics that Hiashi-san called, not see this?" Naruto asked.

"Bribery's the most feasible," Kabuto said. "The elders never really liked her, I guess. They probably think that she's too soft. Too kind. This is the best way to off her without getting blood on their hands." Naruto nodded.

"Is there a cure?"

"Not that I know of," Kabuto said, pulling the boy to his feet.

The two left the room, closing the door behind them, the lady sound asleep.

* * *

><p>Naruto visited the library immediately after their visit to the Hyuuga estate. He pulled out a pile of books and set them on the table, the stack making and impressive sound as it hit the desk. He scoured through them, but most of the cures were only in theory and assumptions. Then, he finally found a battered leather bound book behind a bookshelf. It must have fallen when the last person to peruse it shoved it back in. He sat down and began to read, finally finding a cure. Angel Wings. Its ovaries were poisonous and deadly, but its roots could be made into an antidote that could cure a few poisons, including the one extracted from its ovaries. According to the book, it could also be used to cure 'blood poisoning'.<p>

* * *

><p>"Close enough, but where are we going to get this 'Angel Wings'? It's not like we can skip all the way to Iwa and say, 'Hey! Care to spare us some of your rare poisonous plants? We need it to cure one of your enemies!' Like that's gonna get us anywhere. We'd be shot dead before we can even do anything," Kiba laid the sarcasm on thick when Naruto brought it up.<p>

"No, that's not what we're gonna do, we're gonna go here!" Naruto flipped open a book he'd borrowed and jabbed at what looked like a dungeon. "One of the Densetsu no Sannin, Orochimaru, defected, or was driven out of Konoha. Before he was driven out, he conducted experiments on humans. Sick, I know, but he might have some samples in his lab," Naruto said.

"That's a really big, fat maybe," Shikamaru drawled.

"Yeah, but it's all we've got. You don't want to just let Hinata's mom die, do you?" Naruto asked, playing on their conscience.

"Fine, but we go together. I'll go with you and make sure you lot don't die," Kabuto smiled placidly.

"I'm going wherever Naruto-kun goes," Ami said.

"Right, it's settled then. We meet outside the forest," Naruto said.

"Wait. One problem. Where is the lab? If you don't know where it is, we might as well scrap the plan," Sakura said, dampening their mood.

"I'll go wheedle it out of Jiji somehow. I'll just meet ya'll there," Naruto ran off.

"Does anyone else think that trusting him is going to end with us paragliding off the Hokage monument being chased by axe murderer vampires wielding tribal spears and candy bars?" Ino asked.

The group nodded.

* * *

><p>"Please, Jiji. Could you tell me the location of Orochimaru's laboratory?" Naruto whined, putting all of his emotions behind it.<p>

"Sure, Naruto," the Sandaime scribbled the location down, his eyes unfocused and his expression dazed.

"Here."

"Thanks, Jiji! Could you just forget about everything that I said just now?" Naruto left the room.

'What was I doing just now? Right, paperwork, you are going down!' the Sandaime shouted mentally.

* * *

><p>Naruto crumpled the note paper and pushed it into his pocket, before breaking into a run, towards the T&amp;I building. "You're early," Anko said, munching on a dango. "Okay, today I'm going to teach you about my field of work. There is the physical kind, and the mental kind. I specialise in the physical kind, which means hurting them till they spill!" Anko grinned, picking up another stick of dango. "So, I'm going to teach you about the human body, and where it hurts," Anko said.<p>

"Anko-san, Nii-san already taught me about anatomy," Naruto said.

"I don't wanna know who this person is, do I?" Anko sighed. "Well, let's put it to the test," Anko grinned.

"You're going to point out body parts and have me name them?" Naruto asked.

"No, it seems that guy, the Kusa convict, he's not spilling everything. He's harder to crack than he appears to be, so I win," Anko said smugly.

"Win what?" Naruto cocked his head to the side.

"You bet that you could crack him in three minutes, you have two more minutes to get everything outta him it seems," Anko grinned.

"The catch is that you have to do it my way. Pain all the way." Anko pushed the boy towards the Kusa convict.

The man just looked up and said, "What to do you want?" "Anko-san says that you didn't spill everything. I'm supposed to torture you now," Naruto said, jabbing a thumb at Anko. "Like a kid could torture me. Too bad the lady confiscated your poison," the man sneered.

"Not really," Naruto picked up a scalpel.

"Anko-san, what's this?" Naruto poised the scalpel dangerously close to the man's eye.

"It's his cornea, why?"

"Hm…" Naruto prised the lids open despite the man's protests and stuck the scalpel inside, shaving a bit off. The man bit his lip and whimpered.

"Really tough aren't you?" Naruto said, his tone teasing. The blond forced his hand down the man's throat, forcing a gag reflex. Vomit dribbled out of the man's mouth, before he clamped down on the boy's arm.

"That hurt," the boy smiled, contradicting his words. His gold rimmed eyes blazed with a cool clarity, unclouded by pain. Blood trickled down the blond's arm and down the man's throat. "I wonder how it feels to have your bones ripped out," Naruto mused. He withdrew his hand and turned to the man's arm, his hand dripping with vomit. The blond then smashed the bone. The man howled. The bone jutted out from the skin and the boy removed it centimetre by centimetre…

* * *

><p>Anko watched as her charge attempted to extract information. She didn't understand why he had to force his hand down the man's throat. She smirked as the man's screams reverberated through the room. He was doing really well, and he hadn't run to the bathroom to puke. Suddenly, the man began to convulse and blood began to trickle from his mouth. "Well, this proves it," she heard the boy mutter to himself. The man screamed again.<p>

* * *

><p>The moment the two minutes were up, he had run his mouth. He had been captured for attempting to kidnap Hinata's sick and dying mother. He didn't know who had hired him, but he knew that the man wanted the Byakugan. The man was a mess. He could barely speak and his bones had been pulled out and forced back in, like a gruesome jigsaw puzzle. There were probably other internal injuries that she'd missed, but the man wouldn't ever be hitting the highway again.<p>

* * *

><p>"Seems like you can handle that fairly well. We start your training tomorrow." Anko grinned sadistically.<p>

This was going to be so much fun!

"Bye, Anko-san," Naruto waved, before disappearing towards the forest.

Anko chuckled and shook her head.

He acted like nothing had happened just after wrecking a man.

* * *

><p>Naruto ran towards the forest.<p>

He didn't know why, but the torture session had quelled the urge to hunt.

He met up with the group and they followed the directions to even more forest.

There was nothing but trees.

"Where is it?" Kiba hissed in exasperation. "This was all a big mistake. It never existed so let's go home."

"Wait, I hear wind, flowing in a different direction from the wind here. He turned to a thick tree, his white rimmed eyes picking up every detail.

He then kicked the tree as hard as he could.

"What are you doing?" Sakura hissed.

"There's a small engraving. It looks like a thorned snake biting its tail. It means immortality. I thought hitting it might work," Naruto said.

"Try sliding it," Kiba suggested.

Naruto tried.

It failed.

"Ahh!" Kabuto stumbled, the kunai in his hand slashing Naruto's arm.

"Ow, Nii-san! What the hell?" Naruto cursed.

"Sorry, I'm rather skittish around ghosts," Kabuto said sheepishly.

"Wanna try pressing it like a doorbell?" Ino suggested.

"That sounds odd, but let's give it a go," Naruto pressed the engraving and it sank into the wood.

The tree evaporated into a hundred snakes and slithered away, leaving a hole in the ground.

"Whoa, Ino, you're a genius!" Chouji said.

"Let's get moving," Kiba urged. The group jumped into the hole one by one. They landed in a heap in a dank corridor.

"This is creepy. I've changed my mind. You guys can go on your expedition together. Just get me out of here," Ami wailed.

"Scared, Ami?" Ino taunted. "See? Even Hinata's braver than you."

"I'm not scared. Just cautious," Ami insisted.

"Whatever you say, scaredy cat," Ino laughed.

"Stop!" Kiba shouted urgently. "I smell metal. Lots of it."

"Do you think Orochimaru booby trapped the place?" Sakura asked, eyes wide.

"It's likely. There are seals all over the floor and holes in the walls," Naruto said.

He picked up a stray rock and tossed it at a seal.

The seal exploded, creating a large flare and singeing the hair off their arms as a barrage of kunai and senbon flew from the holes in the walls. The rock was decimated.

"I think we should turn back now," Shikamaru said.

"No, we can just walk around the seals. Besides, the weapons have already been spent. They can't be launched again," Naruto said.

"You were saying?" Kiba pointed to the weaponry on the floor.

They were picking themselves up off the floor like deadly puppets and reinserting themselves back into the holes.

"Now what? Do we turn back?" Chouji asked.

"No. It takes time for the weapons to return to the launch, so we can use this time to cross the room," Shikamaru reasoned.

Naruto nodded, "As for the seals, just walk around them. It took about ten seconds for the weapons to reinsert themselves. We have that amount of time to get across."

"Okay, let's do this!" Kiba shouted.

"R-Ready?" Hinata asked, getting nods. She tossed a rock onto the floor, missing the seal.

Weapons shot out and clattered to the floor.

"Go, go, go!" Kabuto pushed Kiba and Naruto forward. The two ran across the corridor, avoiding the seals. They made it across just as the weaponry was returned to their launchers.

"Ino and Sakura next," Kabuto said.

Hinata threw another rock and the process was repeated.

The weapons shot out of their cradles and impaled an imaginary man. Sakura and Ino ran across, making it just in time.

he next pair was Shikamaru and Chouji. The two made it across without a problem.

Then came Ami and Hinata. Kabuto tossed the rock and the pair stumbled across the corridor. As she reached the end, Hinata's foot brushed a seal. She barely had time to squeak before a flame engulfed Kabuto's vision. 'There goes one of them,' he sighed. When the flame died down, it was like a curtain had been dropped, revealing Naruto, on his back, Hinata lying on top of him. He'd saved her at the last minute. Kabuto danced across the corridor, joining the others.

"Who knows how many booby traps are in here," Ino's voice echoed.

"Shh…" Naruto hissed.

"Don't you shh me," Ino nearly shouted.

A metal grille fell from the ceiling, spiderweb cracks extending from where it had fallen.

"That's why, shh," Naruto whispered. Ino nodded, tears in her eyes.

They made it across the room safely, entering another corridor. "Great, a poison lake. How are we supposed to get across, swim?" Kiba asked.

The lake before them was filled to the brim with a purple substance and gave off a choking odour.

"There's a trap above us. It releases a large slab of metal. We have to trigger the trap to get across," Sakura said, directing everyone's attention upwards.

"Yes, braniac, but how do we trigger it?" Ami asked.

"There's something scratched here. 'Those who do not seek power and immortality shall never find it'. Weird," Kiba read. "I'm guessing it has something to do with these seals here." There were six seals spaced apart from each other. "This one's easy," Kiba pressed the thorned serpent biting its tail and a hail of kunai flew out, followed by the panel self- destructing.

"Now what? You just ruined it!" Ino shouted at Kiba.

"No, wait. Those who do not seek it shall not find it. We're giving up too soon. Take a look at the pieces, then take a look at the panel," Shikamaru pointed at the scattered pieces. Behind the panel was another panel, a slightly different colour from the surrounding rock. They slid it open and found a hole in the wall in the shape of a thorned serpent biting its tail.

"A jigsaw?" Chouji picked a shattered piece on the floor and fitted it into the hole.

It produced a click and something creaked above their heads.

"Find the pieces and put them inside the hole," Kabuto said.

They went about picking up the pieces and forcing them into the hole.

Finally, a complete figure was embedded in the rock.

The metal slab lowered from above, but didn't quite form a bridge.

"Try pushing the symbol," Kabuto suggested.

The panel was pushed in and the bridge finally clicked itself into place. They traversed it without a problem.

'This is the end of all the booby traps,' Kabuto thought, before he saw a symbol on the door ahead of them. 'That wasn't there before,' he mused.

"Someone try touching it," Kiba said.

"No way. We nearly got killed a few times. I am not touching that," Ino said, putting her hands on her hips.

The others nodded their assent.

"Fine, I'll do it," Naruto touched the symbol. "There, see?" he said.

The door swung open and a hail of blades rained down on him from all sides.

**A/N: Kind of rushing. Wish me luck on my exam on Thursday. :( Please review, thank you! **


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: I am sad. Why didn't anyone tell me about my mistake with the chemical formula of salt?

Chapter 9:

Sakura screamed.

Hinata fainted.

Kiba shouted for Naruto to run.

Ami began to cry.

Shikamaru and Chouji turned away.

Kabuto was no where to be found.

Naruto was currently being impaled by the weapons.

When the barrage died down, a cloud of dust had picked up, obscuring their view. Finally, the dust cleared, but saw nothing except a forest of blades. "N-Naruto…" Ami whimpered. Just then, Kabuto appeared from behind the blades and walked towards them, Naruto in his arms. "You just can't wait can you," Kabuto sighed. "It's not my fault," Naruto shouted indignantly. "Yes it is. You shouldn't have touched the symbol. You would have died if I hadn't saved you," Kabuto lectured. 'Why did I save him?' Kabuto questioned himself. "Anyways, the door's open. Let's explore!" Naruto said, as if he hadn't just been bombarded with deadly weapons. As the others entered the room, Shikamaru grabbed the blond's arm and swiped up the sleeve. A large laceration adorned his arm, going vertically down. "Why didn't you heal it?" Shikamaru asked after a few seconds. "It's not as if I haven't tried, okay? Nii-san tried too, but it just wouldn't work!" Naruto snapped, baring his teeth and growling. Shikamaru started and let go off the appendage, before narrowing his eyes as the blond licked the gash. "I'm sorry, there's just something about this place… It's setting me on edge. I have a bad feeling about this, but I'm probably just being paranoid. I've watched one too many scary movies where the protagonist says, 'I have a bad feeling about this' and thirty seconds later, they all die," Naruto shrugged. "Yeah, you are being paranoid," Shikamaru said. "Really? Didn't I just get showered by a few hundred projectiles?"Naruto retorted. "Then why say anything in the first pla-"Shikamaru was cut off by a scream. The two ran into the room without hesitation. "Oh my God, what is that?" Naruto gasped. "I don't know," Shikamaru said. Alabaster skin stood out against the dark operating table, and its long arms were wrapped around itself, and the rest of its body looked like it comprised of nothing but mouths.

"You say you were just signing papers, and then suddenly you were staring at the door and felt a bit dizzy and uncoordinated?" a man asked. "Yes," a second person said. "And you experienced a gap in your memory?" the first man asked again. "Yes," the second person replied. "And time jumped a few minutes?" the first man asked again. "Yes, darn it, Jiraiya, just answer me, what is wrong with me? I've had a few lapses in memory lately," the Sandaime put his head in his hands. "Well, either you're going senile, or someone's been charm speaking you," Jiraiya diagnosed. "I think it's the former, because it's impossible that there's another one."What's charm speak? And what do you mean by 'another one'?" the Sandaime asked. "Another Anima, but they usually turn out to be geniuses. You haven't heard the villagers raving about someone surpassing the Yondaime or something like that, have you?" Jiraiya asked. "Maybe about Sasuke and Kisa, but what are you talking about? You haven't answered me yet, and what's Anima?" the Sandaime asked exasperatedly. "Do those two have animals trailing them everywhere they go?" Jiraiya ignored the question again. The Sandaime grunted in exasperation, "No, only the Inuzuka have animals trailing them, and Naruto." The Sandaime glared at Jiraiya in agitation. "Alright, alright. Anima are people who have… how to say… basically share a bond with an animal, and that animal follows them around like a lost puppy, or vice-versa. They, like I said, usually turn out to be geniuses, because, for some obscure reason, Mother Nature would rather her 'interesting' creations partner someone with higher IQ than the Legendary Stupid Brothers' puny brains combined(I'm so sorry! I mean no offence!). Which probably means I'm stupid, seeing as I'm not one, but what the heck. Charm speaking, is a talent that they tend to have, which allows them to speak to kin of their animal partner, and also, sometimes, influence humans. The strongest ones can talk you into doing something, and you won't even remember that they even asked, if they so wished it, which is why they're kinda dangerous. But I suppose you're just going senile," Jiraiya finished. "How do you know so much, Jiraiya? Even I didn't know that they existed," the Sandaime looked surprised at this information. Jiraiya nodded his head in the direction of the portraits above the Sandaime's head. "I brought him on a mission when he was a Gennin. He ran off and came back with this… fuzzy brown and white thing on his shoulder. The brown, was, I think, a peregrine falcon. The white was bandages. He said it got hurt attacking him. Likely story," Jiraiya snorted. "He probably just found it kicked out of its nest or something and rescued it. Same night, he kept kicking me! He said he was having a nightmare but I think he was having a blast hearing me squeal every time he landed a hit on my balls," Jiraiya pouted. "After that it just followed him around 365 days a year, 12 months a year, approximately 4 weeks a month, 7 days a week, 24 hours a day, 60 minutes an hour, 60 seconds per minute. I took notes and learned from there. Though there was a time when he was kind of… unstable, I guess"The first part sounds a lot like Shiro and Naruto," the Sandaime mused. "Shiro?" Jiraiya parroted. "This white tiger that keeps following around," the Sandaime replied. "I don't believe it. I was hoping he'd be stupid enough to not get… Just great, does that tiger seem suspicious, as in… has it done anything like… disappear for days on end?" Jiraiya asked. "I don't think so, why?" the Sandaime said. "Good, I'll be going now, I've gotta meet a contact in Kusa," Jiraiya disappeared.

"Naruto, what do you think of Orochimaru, looking at all this?" Kabuto asked suddenly as the two walked down isle upon isle of jars, having split up to search. "I think he's a sick bastard, and the Hokage was right to drive him away," Naruto spat. "Don't you think he did all this for a reason?" Kabuto asked. "Yeah, for his own sick pleasure," Naruto looked back at the dead monstrosity on the operating table "Has it ever crossed your mind that he was experimenting for the sake of the village? Do you ever wonder if he tinkered with all this to create new jutsu to protect the village?" Kabuto asked. "Never thought of it, but I doubt anyone who'd willingly create that, using a living, breathing, human, would be doing anything for the villagers. And I'm willing to bet that that guy was a villager from Konoha!" Naruto pointed at the failed experiment. "I'm sure he was taken from our enemy, Iwa. The headband around his arm said so, even if it was a bit rusted. Don't you think that's killing two birds with one stone? Reducing the numbers of our enemy while strengthening our own country?" Kabuto said. "I still think it's sick," Naruto grumbled. "He's still taking lives, enemy or no."Well, someone's got to do it," Kabuto said. "Why are you asking me this, anyway. The way you talk, it's as if you agree with Orochimaru's experimenting," Naruto said. "I don't. I just try to think of other possible reasons Orochimaru could have experimented, other than for his own gain. Besides, Yondaime-sama took lives too, yet you worship him like he's God."That's different! He killed for Konoha!"Then wouldn't Orochimaru have been doing the same?"Yeah, but the Yondaime didn't go and tinker around with their insides, and turn them into… monsters."And you don't fancy yourself like Orochimaru? Hurting people for information?"That's different, Nii-san!"I'm just kidding! You didn't have to punch me!" Kabuto nursed his broken nose, before turning to ruffle the blond's hair, his nose completely healed. "But seriously, you can't possibly think of the Yondaime as some sort of angel. Even he has stained his hands with another's lifeblood, and probably done much worse," Kabuto said, a serious expression on his face. Naruto nodded, taking his Nii-san's words to heart. "He might even be the reason the villagers hate you," Kabuto laughed. "Don't even joke about that!" Naruto punched the silver haired man in the arm. "Ow! Alright! No more bashing Yondaime the Angel! I get it!" Kabuto laughed. Naruto crossed his arms and smiled triumphantly. "Hey! Is that…?" Kabuto pointed at a small glass jar beside Naruto's head, labelled 'Angel Wings: Roots'. "I think it is!" Naruto said, swiping the jar from the shelf. "Yatta! We got it!" Kabuto just smiled mysteriously at Naruto's outburst.

It was morning by the time they found an exit and got home, all of them too tired to think about anything but sleep. Luckily, it was a weekend. Unluckily for Naruto, Anko was waiting at his door, tapping her foot impatiently. "Where'd you go, and why do you look so ragged?" she asked. Naruto just shook his head, sluggishly opened the door to his apartment, set the glass bottle on the table, and promptly collapsed on the floor, fast asleep. "Hey! Gaki!" Anko sighed and shook her head when the blond didn't even twitch. "Get up Gaki, or I'll have you running so many laps, even Gai would collapse in exhaustion!" Anko screamed in the blond's ear. "You can't exhaust me if I'm already exhausted," came the blond's mumbled reply. "Get up! I said I'd train you, and I will! Now, you will get up or I'll dunk you in the tub," Anko threatened. The blond didn't move. Anko huffed and stomped off to the bathroom, filling a large pail with water. She then hefted it into the living room and set it down on the floor, water sloshing off the sides. The next thing Naruto knew, water was filling his windpipe, and he struggled, not knowing where was up or down. Finally, sweet oxygen came to his lungs, and he coughed tubercular hacks, water dripping from his head and onto the floor. "Anko!" Naruto shouted. Anko burst into fits of laughter. "You should see your face! My only regret right now is that I didn't bring a camcorder!" Anko chuckled. "Well, I'm awake now, what do you want?" Naruto grumbled, irked at having been woken up. "We start training today, remember? We're going to training ground 3 for dodge training," Anko said, before dragging the still-sopping-wet Naruto out the front door, not bothering to let the blond lock the door.

"Ahhhhh! What the hell, Anko! Are you trying to kill me?" Naruto shouted as he went into a dodging frenzy, trying to avoid the sharp objects being thrown at him. Shiro yawned lazily on the side, before yelping as a barrage of kunai were launched at him too. "You! You're training too!" Anko shouted at Shiro. Shiro only nodded, and began dodging the hail of projectiles, for fear of his life. Not long after, the two were left panting on the ground, soaked in sweat. Naruto started snoring. "Hey, Gaki! Wake up!" Anko launched a kunai at Naruto, aiming at his cheek. Shiro growled and leaped into the line of fire, getting hit in the stomach. "Shiro!" Naruto shouted. Shiro disappeared in a puff of smoke. "Where…?" Naruto looked around for Shiro, tears in his eyes. "I'm… sorry, Gaki," Anko looked at the blond. "But I'm sure he just returned to wherever he cam from so his family members can patch him up, or something."I'm not stupid! He's dead isn't he?" Naruto shouted, anger and sadness evident in his eyes. Anko looked taken aback. "He wasn't your summon?"What's a summon?" Naruto sniffled. Anko smiled and let a laugh escape her, "You didn't even know he was a summon! Well, Gaki, a summon is an animal which you call upon using 'Kuchiyose no Jutsu' to aid you in battle. They can unsummon theselves, meaning they'll return to wherever they came from. If they get hurt, they can do that, which sends them back home, where they can patch themselves up, so Shiro's not dead. He just went home."How do I summon him again?" Naruto asked, his eyes wide. "Well, you must have signed the contract for one of them to be following you around," Anko said. "I didn't sign a contract," Naruto said. "Sleep sign, then." Anko dismissed his comment. "Why else would it be following you around? Though it's a bit much to stay here in our world for two years and not unsummon itself. But don't you think that you'd want to give Shiro some time to rest?"O…ok, but how do I know you aren't lying to me?" Naruto asked defiantly. "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" Anko slammed her hand on the ground, and a small garden snake appeared. "Cool!" Naruto grabbed the snake and nearly strangled it to death. "Naruto, put it down!" Anko shouted at her charge, and the blond complied. "Now, I'm sorry, Nissa, here, you can go now," Anko handed the summon a large rat which she unsealed from a scroll. The snake left with a grumble, "Why'd you summon me here in the first place?

Kabuto's mind wandered to a certain blond. He was unsure if the seed of doubt he'd planted could take root, because, even at such a young age, Naruto was a patriot, and the kind that would lay down his life for his village without a second thought. The dangerous kind. Especially one of Naruto's breed, because of the 'you-know-what'. He stared at the fast setting sun. Had the day really gone by like that? He'd done nothing very productive, just read a few books, but he guessed that he would have to be satisfied with that. The doorbell brought him out of his musings, and he walked over to the living room, before opening the door. A certain blond entered, holding their findings from the previous night. "Naruto, what are you doing here?" Kabuto enquired. "I thought that… maybe you could make the antidote today," the blond's every word seemed strained, but, looking into the boy's gold rimmed eyes, he couldn't find the will to refuse. "I'll do it; you can observe and take notes. You can learn something from this," Kabuto sighed, as Naruto handed him the small bottle. Naruto shook his head and dashed into the toilet. "Weird, he's always really eager," Kabuto mumbled as he retreated to his small laboratory.

"Shit," Naruto fingered his canine, noting that they'd elongated and sharpened to fine points. He pulled his hand away to grab his neck as it sent another bout of pain through him. He removed his hand and held it up to his eyes when it passed, and noticed a patch of blood imprinted on his palm. He could feel 'it' battling against him. Though he didn't know exactly what 'it' was, it felt horrible. Every second that passed, he could feel it thrashing like a wild beast, thirsting for prey. Anything breathing jumped out at him and the beast howled for a chance to rip into their flesh, leaving him a shaking mass, barely able to resist. He sat on the floor and leaned his back against the side of the bathtub, hanging his head and trying to focus on nothing but seals. He soon drifted into sleep.

Kabuto held the antidote in one hand, only it wasn't an antidote. He had added poison to it, intending to kill the sick Hyuuga once and for all. "Naruto, did you faint in there?" Kabuto called as he rapped on the door of the bathroom. "Nii-san?" he heard a tired voice call out. The door opened and the blond emerged, rubbing sleep from his eyes. His eyes immediately widened the moment they rested on the silver haired man. "You finished the antidote?" Naruto asked, his voice quivering. Kabuto nodded and smiled. "But don't tell anyone, okay?" Naruto nodded feverishly in agreement.

Hinata greeted the two at the door and ushered them in quietly. The three then slinked into the dim room again, kneeling before the sick Hyuuga. "Okaa-san, we found a way to cure you," Hinata said, her happiness unmasked, she did not stutter. "That's nice, Hinata," the Hyuuga responded.

Anko sat, pondering about her sort-of student. He had suddenly excused himself and before that, he was shaking like a leaf in the wind. "Heh, probably couldn't handle the training," Anko grinned to herself, but the grin faltered. She knew this was not true. The boy had taken everything she'd thrown at him, literally, up until the point Shiro disappeared. He had appeared drained and shaken, as if he had just had a training session with Gai for the first time, and he kept averting his gaze, as well as spacing out a lot. 'I can only pray that the Kyuubi isn't breaking free,' Anko chewed on her dango.

"I'm so sorry, Hinata, I must have taken the wrong bottle," Naruto apologised as he poised a knife to cut a lemon. "I-It's n-not y-your f-fault," Hinata whispered, though he could see the doubt in her eyes. Doubt in her own words. "Argh! Why does this keep happening?" Naruto shouted as he chopped the lemon. He had created a shallow cut on his finger. "First, I get cut by a stake, and then I get cut by a kunai, then, a sword, and now, a knife while I'm trying to make lemonade! Am I cursed to be accident prone or something?" Hinata giggled slightly as Naruto sent a caustic glare at the knife, despite his sentence not being funny. It was a nervous giggle, wanting to escape the reality that her mother was doomed to die. Naruto rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, before grinding the lemon as hard as he could on the juicer, welcoming the feeling of the stinging pain he felt. The beast had screamed to sink its teeth into Hinata's flesh this time, and the pain would take his mind off it, hopefully. He was still painfully aware of 'it' whispering feverishly in the back of his mind, coaxing him to take a bite, and Hinata, obliviously juicing another lemon, her flawless alabaster skin taunting him. Red ran into yellow as he set his hands on autopilot, juicing the lemon, discarding the skin and pulp, mixing the honey and lemon juice, tossing in a few ice cubes, not noticing his blood slowly dripping, rivulet by rivulet into the cup and mingling with the beverage.

"I'm sorry. I know it's not very healthy, but I really wanted to drink Hinata's homemade lemonade one more time, before I die. I guess you could say it's on my bucket list," Hinata's mom smiled and coughed weakly as she graciously accepted the glass of lemonade. "I helped too," Naruto piped up. "And I thank you for that," she turned her smile on the blond. The Hyuuga slowly sipped the glass of lemonade.

"You up for it today? You can rest today if you want," Anko told her sort-of apprentice, feeling slightly worried, not that she would admit it to anyone, and especially not to herself. "No, it's okay," Naruto spoke, his words not registering in his brain. Said organ was currently trying desperately to occupy itself with human anatomy, as his teeth ached and every part of his body cried out along with the beast to tear into Anko, not that he could. She was too strong.

His shaking was unnerving. She could see him trembling, as if he'd been on crack and was suffering withdrawal without the white drug. Every time she met his eyes, it was like looking into the eyes of a wild beast, struggling with its instincts. It certainly seemed that way. 'Has the gold rim around his eyes become thicker? It's just my imagination,' Anko pushed the thought away, and ushered the blond into the interrogation room, deciding that learning how to withstand interrogation could wait. He looked like he'd go berserk even without torture. "So, interrogation, or me teaching you torture techniques?

Kabuto ran a hand through his hair in slight irritation. Hinata's mother was steadily getting better. The colour was returning to her skin and the harmful enzymes produced by her bloodline were slowly disappearing, and were not being produced anymore. Even the poison he'd given her had disappeared. 'What's going on?' Kabuto wondered, before getting up and exiting the room with Hinata. Naruto had rushed off to Anko, not being able to stand the tension. He blamed himself for speeding up the imminent death of Hinata's mother, and here she was, recovering, just from drinking a glass of lemonade. 'I'll just take a sample of the lemonade and run some tests on it later,' Kabuto decided, before making a big show of stumbling and dropping the glass. An explosion of shimmering particles went off on the floor and he apologised profusely, sweeping the glass into a small pile, secretly swiping a shard and depositing it into his weapons pouch.

Gakko stared up at the boy impassively. He'd been trained to resist torture, but that didn't stop him from feeling a twinge of fear. The blond before him held a feral look to him, the grin on his face completing the look of sadism. The most unsettling thing about the boy, though, was his eyes. They were a startling gold and as thick as honey, though it was as if they were restraining a beast. There was a glint of steel, and his tendon was slashed through. Beads of sweat dotted his forehead. He looked into the boy's eyes again. The beast was unleashed.

Anko struggled to hold back the blond, blood seeping into her clothes. The one in her grip looked as though he'd bathed in blood, and the prisoner, strapped to the chair, had been reduced to a babbling, bloody, psychologically unstable mess, cowering in fear, promising to tell her everything if she took Naruto far away from him. The blond had been merciless that day, torturing like she would when she was pissed, or someone had reminded her of her old, snaky bastard of a sensei, and possibly a tad worse, incorporating Ibiki's mental torture as well. But it was wasted on the mid-class criminal. The reason she was holding Naruto back, was that he had refused to stop, even after the prisoner had agreed to talk. It was as if he had lost his mind, torturing the prisoner to death. "Naruto!" Anko shouted, and the blond stopped thrashing. "Hai," the blond responded, though his voice wavered slightly. "That's enough. He's agreed to talk. You can go… wash," Anko said. "Hai," Naruto replied.

"You nearly killed him, what were you thinking? If you'd killed him, how would we have gotten the information then? Well, you have to learn this. This is what makes our job slightly difficult. You can't kill the prisoner, no matter how irritating he is, or how much he refuses to crack. Your aim is to get information, not to end the guy's life, because then, we won't get any information," Anko lectured. "Hai," Naruto nodded, his thoughts far away. "Good, I'm really sorry, I accidentally… dispelled Shiro, but you have to try to act at least semi-normal while he's gone. You can re-summon him tomorrow, though I have no idea how to do that, but still! You shouldn't just sit around and mope. Try and do something productive to take your mind off him in the least, okay?" Anko said. "Hai," Naruto looked down at his feet. "Well, not that that would be a problem. It's night, go and get some sleep," Anko smiled. "Hai."Will you stop answering with 'Hai'? I can't deal with monosyllabic idiots! Spare me the pain!"Hai."Arrrghhh!"


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Sorry about the hiatus. I had exams so… Anyway, exams are over and they're coming again! Mendokuse…**

**GrayTheBlueJay- Lionboy... Well, honestly speaking, I really want to thank you for that contribution. I was bored and had a library on hand. I just didn't know what to borrow when I saw your review! It's an amazing book, but I'm sad to say that I had never even heard of it before you mentioned it. I really appreciate that you commented. Just the fact that you commented makes me happy. Thank you!)**

**Lednacek- Noted. Thank you for the advice, and I already fixed that.)**

**jazmyn- Thank you! XD**

_Chapter 10: Kamikakushi_

"Like this?"

"Yeah, just run through the seals and slam your palm on the floor."

"Okay. Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" Naruto's hand met with the ground.

Nothing happened.

Again.

A cricket chirruped somewhere in the grass.

"I... I think he's probably still recovering. I did catch him the stomach after all," Anko stammered, seeing the tears in the blond's eyes. "Come on, don't cry. He'll come back. I'm sure of it." Naruto tilted his head, and Anko flicked his forehead playfully. "Don't look so sullen. You'll shock even ghosts to death. I'm going to go get a mission from the Hokage, so you can have the rest of the day off." So saying, Anko vanished in a swirl of leaves. Naruto stayed in the empty clearing for a while before making his way towards civilisation. It had been quite some time after Shiro disappeared, and they were still trying to get him back, but to no avail.

On the way, he passed by the Hyuuga estate. He hung his head and contemplated for a while before entering, never once drawing the attention of the Hyuuga lurking around. As he was approaching Hinata's room, he heard shouting. Poking his head around a door, he was greeted by the sight of brown haired man with milky white eyes reprimanding Hinata. "How many times are you going to get it wrong? Neji is many times better! He's a prodigy but he's in the branch family. You're a disgrace to the main family," he yelled. Hinata cowered away from the man. "You can go," the man dismissed her. Hinata slouched away, defeated. The blond peeking in on them swiped a sheet of paper and a pen, before bounding ahead of the Hyuuga heiress, scribbling something on the paper. Hinata quietly shut the door to her painfully empty room. She could feel a lump in her throat and tears pricking her eyes. She knew she was close to crying. Sighing, she flopped heavily onto her futon. A deafening crunch sounded out and she leaped from her perch, startled. A piece of paper fluttered from her bum and she tenderly picked it up off the ground.

_**Don't give up. You can do it.**_

Hinata stared for a while at the piece of paper, before delicately folding it and stowing it away in her drawer, smiling the entire time. She didn't know who had written it and placed it there, but it made her day, knowing there was someone looking out for her. Taking up the Jyuuken stance, she went through the style, flowing liquidly as if she were dancing. Naruto smiled as she started practising, before leaping from the tree he was in, over the wall and out of the compound.

* * *

><p>"Anko, where's Naruto? I thought I requested for you to bring him along," the Sandaime quirked an eyebrow.<p>

"Really? I can't recall. But why do ya want him on the mission with me anyway? I asked you a few times before and you said he was too young or something," Anko said.

"This mission requires a child, and I know you well enough to know that you'd make life hell for whoever is going with you that isn't blond and whose name doesn't mean fishcake," the Hokage answered.

"True," Anko scratched the back of her head sheepishly.

"Besides, this mission isn't as difficult as it sounds. There should be no shinobi involved," the Sandaime added.

"I'll go get him." She vanished in a flurry of leaves. The Hokage sighed. A mouthful of heavenly noodles slipped down his throat when he heard a voice,

* * *

><p>"Hey Gaki, we're going on a mission."<p>

"Anko-san? I thought I had the day off?" Naruto raised the bowl to his lips and downed the broth. Hokage's orders," Anko said, leaving out the fact that she had the option of going with another, possibly more skilled, child.

"Hai," Naruto sighed, paying before leaving.

They walked in the general direction of the administrative side of the academy.

They reached the Hokage tower and entered the office.

Through the window.

The Hokage looked up as a draft blew in to see Anko with Naruto slung over her shoulder.

She dropped him on the floor with a loud thump. "I got him," Anko announced triumphantly.

"I can see that," the Sandaime said as Naruto picked himself up off the floor. "Ignoring your entrance, your mission is to infiltrate a travelling circus."

"That doesn't sound too hard, but why would I need a child with me?" Anko asked.

"Here's the lowdown. The circus just emerged out of the woodwork one day, calling itself Kamikakushi. It travelled to a few towns and villages, performing there, but the next day, a few people, either civilian or ninja, disappeared. The strange thing is that no one seems to remember who the missing people were or that they even existed, even relatives and close friends. The client has refused to disclose his personal information to anyone but the Hokage, and has provided us with the location of Kamikakushi. As for why you need a child, you two are to act as refugees and seek to join the circus for sanctuary, and it would be more believable with a child," the Sandaime answered. "You will be departing to Hanezakana. It's a town that specialises in fishing. Kamikakushi is headed for there as we speak. Your mission is to infiltrate Kamikakushi and find out where the missing people went, and the cause of the partial memory loss of those who knew them."

"Hai," the two chorused.

* * *

><p>"Ne, ne! Yuki! When do you think we're gonna reach Hanezakana?" a black haired girl in peculiar clothes stared listlessly out the caravan at passing vehicles.<p>

"Soon, Yumi," an identical looking boy with slightly less feminine features sighed, staring out the window as well, enjoying the feeling of the cool, albeit dusty, air caress his cheeks.

"Ne, ne! Yuki! What are those?" Yumi jabbed her finger excitedly in the direction of a transportation van. Two sets of glowing amber eyes shone from the darkness of the rear. Anger and confusion seemed to roil in its honey coloured depths. Then, they vanished.

"I don't Yuki started, before the van next to them shuddered, as if someone or something was trying to break free from the confines of the van. Shouts laced with fear and confusion emitted from the vehicle. The van lurched dangerously, the tires spitting dust as if in protest as it leaned towards the caravan. The middle aged lady in the driver's seat gripped the steering wheel tightly, so much so that her knuckles had been drained of colour, leaving a pale white. Cold sweat beaded her forehead as she wrenched the steering wheel away from the van, which had swerved away. She muttered colourful curses under her breath. The brakes and wheels weren't responding. That was what happened when they failed to do maintainence work on the caravan. Why did it have to give out at a time like this? Screams and shouts filled with desperation rose from both vehicles as the circus performers held on to whatever stable fixture they could find. The van hit a lampost and skidded, curving into perfect circles and careening right into the caravan. "Rushi!" Yuki yelled to the driver, finally snapping out of his daze and running towards the front of the vehicle, slamming his hands urgently on the dashboard as Rushi stared on in shock, her hands still gripping the steering wheel like a lifeline. The caravan responded to the boy's touch and swerved out of the way as the out of control van ran up against another vehicle, the wheels screeching onto the cart and crushing it. The van tilted towards the caravan, Yuki steering it away, the van drawing a long scar down the side of the caravan as it fell to the ground on its side and skidded a few feet before coming to a halt, spraying dust across the road. The haggard looking horse pulling the destroyed cart whinnied in fear and tugged feverishly at the reins that were pinned under the wreckage. Yuki heaved a sigh of relief and wiped the sweat that had collected on his forehead. The circus performers started cheering for the boy who had saved their lives.

"That was awesome, Yuki!" Rushi patted him on the back and he stared at the floor sheepishly, not used to being inundated with praise. However, the relief was short-lived as a roar cut through the air. A loud scraping noise was heard and two monstrous beings burst from the wreckage, not completely unharmed. The circus performers filed out of the caravan. The sub-caravans were still a safe distance away, but they were not. One of the two monsters sniffed at the air and roared again, before slamming a clawed paw onto the ground with enough strength to send spider-web cracks through it. The monsters were like nothing they had ever seen. Majestic and yet deadly at the same time. The larger one batted a paw at the wreckage, as if trying to look for something. It had pitch black fur, which rippled each time it flexed its powerful muscles. A halo of gold fur went around its forehead like a crown and large, leathery black wings extended from its back. Amber eyes of the smaller one darted left and right, finally falling on the circus performers. It lowered its head to become level with them and released a malicious roar.

"Daisuke! Do something!" Yumi shouted at a brown haired male. He was the resident strongman but in the face of such a monstrous being, he was at a loss for what to do. It snapped at them almost playfully and nudged its companion, the latter turning to inspect them. The animals towered over them and Yumi pushed Daisuke towards the beast as some sort of human sacrifice. The larger beast turned away and continued batting at the wreckage, losing interest in them, but the other seemed intent on eating them, and bared its teeth, each one about as long as Yuki's forearm.

"Uh... um... Down, boy..." the brunet trailed off, losing his courage and whimpering when the beast opened it mouth, leaving him to face a yawning chasm lined with teeth. Growls rumbled on the back of the creature's throat and Daisuke seemed to shrink in size.

The massive jaws were about to close down on the troupe when a voice called out, "Kuro-chan Number 1!" The monster, as well as the performers, turned their heads to see two cloaked people situated near the wreckage of the cart. One was lying prone on the ground, his or her figure smaller than the one who had called out to the beast, and the other was standing protectively over his or her companion. Their clothes appeared to be ragged and they seemed to have no worldly posessions other than the cloth on their backs. The other monster who seemed to have no interest in the group previously, turned to the two and advanced on them, sniffing at the air curiously. The person seemed to back away as it approached and grabbed the collar of his or her companion, shaking the person vigorously. "You're not Kuro-chan Number 1," the cloaked person shouted at the monster still shaking his or her companion. "He's Kuro-chan Number 1. You're Kuro-chan Number 2!" The person then turned back to the figure on the ground and screamed, "Wake up or we're all gonna become kitty food!"

The one on the ground got up and shook his head as if to clear the cobwebs, before asking, "What's wrong?" It took a while for the performers to realize that the person was speaking to the beasts and not to his companion. The monsters growled in response. "I see, it must have been difficult for you two," he walked over to the beasts. Daisuke reached out and grabbed the person's arm in an attempt to save the poor delusional fool. However, his efforts were wasted as his eyes met with a cold, amber stare, not unlike that of the monsters', that chilled him down to his soul. He gasped and released his grip, allowing the person to advance.

Yuki nudged the strongman. "Why'd you let go? They're going to eat him," he whispered in a worried tone. Daisuke remained silent, as if by talking he'd break an oath and be punished for committing blasphemy. The group simply watched as the person strolled up to the beasts and lay a gentle hand on the smaller of the two. What surprised them most though was not that it didn't attack the person, but instead, the fact that it pressed its head further into the person's hand, a contented purr rumbling in the back of it's throat. The person stroked it, eliciting a few more satisfied purrs, before he moved to the side and disappeared from view. The group watched with bated breath until a hand appeared, carefully cleaning the wounds on its body before expertly securing a bandage over the gash running down its back from the base of its wing to its side. There were other wounds like it, as if someone had tortured it into submission. He turned to the other beast and gave it the same treatment.

"Sorry you had to see them going wild like that," the person said, stroking one of the monsters. "Not that they aren't, normally," he added quickly when they growled in displeasure. The monsters returned to purring and rubbing up against him. "They were genetically engineered to look this way and trained to attack anything that their master deems an enemy. Then they were caged, ill treated and put on auction. Apparently, they have chakra resistant hides and their skin is impervious to most blades. That was why they were created in the first place. Weapons for war," he said. An inaudible whisper brushed past his lips, his eyes glazed over, "Like me."

"Sorry about that," the taller figure took off her hood to reveal a head of purple hair. "The name's Kino, and he's my son, Hiruko. Could we seek sanctuary in your circus while the civil war in our homeland blows over?" Kino (Anko, but she shall be called Kino from now on, likewise for Naruto) asked.

"The two of you are welcome in our humble family. I see your son has a thing for animals. We needed an animal tamer. Seems like we've got one," Rushi, the ringmaster, stepped out of the group. She turned to Hiruko, "And your two friends are welcome too if they can promise not to eat anybody and earn their keep by performing along with you."

"Thank you!" Hiruko bowed. The beasts growled. "And they promise!"

Rushi raised an inquisitive eyebrow at this and Kino quickly added, "He's been able to talk to felines since young. No one knows why."

"That would undoubtedly make him a great asset. And don't worry. We're nearly all freaks here in our little circus, so I don't think you'll feel left out," Rushi said kindly. Then she turned to Kino, "Is there any special skill that you have which you can contribute to our circus?"

Kino thought for a while before saying, "I can cook a feast in five minutes if you give me the right ingredients."

Rushi cocked an eyebrow, "You'll have to display to me your culinary skills some time. But rest assured, if we can't find an act for you, you can be my assistant." Rushi smiled warmly. "Guys, please make the new members of our family feel welcome!" she announced.

The troupe whispered among themselves, but Yumi didn't hesitate to step forward, grab Hiruko by the arm and say, "Hey! My name's Yumi! Can I help you name them?" Hiruko stood, befuddled, before nodding. "Hello, Kin-chan and Gin-chan!" Yumi patted each of them on the head. They gave a small whine each in acknowledgement.

"Gold and silver?" Hiruko asked. He looked from the one on his right to the one on his left and tried to find an indication of the feature with which its colour they had been christened after.

"Yeah, because this one has a gold crown and this one has a silver crown," Yumi said, clasping Hiruko's hands in her own and bouncing around elatedly. Hiruko then noticed the slight colour difference in the crown like pattern stretching across their foreheads like halos. Yuki and Yumi spent most of the ride in the caravan conversing with Hiruko, while Kino made small talk with the adult performers. Hiruko found that nearly all the performers had unique abilities uncommon even in the ninja world. Yuki had complete control over any vehicle and Yumi could control fire to a degree even ninjas couldn't achieve, and it was without the use of handsigns. The two were twins who had been in the circus for a long as they could remember. The strongman, Daisuke, the one who attempted to stop him previously, could use his body heat to melt metal if he so wished it, and Rushi was a seer. She could gaze into the future, know who you were related to merely by touching your palms, know which card in a poker deck was the one you picked and the list went on. She was the magician of the troupe as well as the ringleader. Kage, as his friends called him, was the person who did the disappearing acts, seeing as his ability was to travel through the shadows as well as go from one shadow to another. The clown, Mino, had a quirky affinity for getting into the most awkward and silly situations, and he seemed to love it. Then there was their resident musician. He was blind, but he could play any instrument, and that, apparently, was his ability. Then came Maka, the alchemist girl who could turn metal into gold, if there was a small speck of gold inside, with just a touch of her fingers. Last but not least were Mari and Ren, the trapeze artists who were the only ones without a special ability, not counting Mino. Though, judging by their immense skill in the air, a special ability wasn't necessary.

That night, Hiruko lay on the floor of the caravan with the other perormers and gazed out at the sky, wondering how Hinata was doing back at home. He searched the twilight for a message about her, but all he received was the cold blinking of the stars that conveyed nothing. He soon fell asleep, the small uncertainty nagging at the back of his mind was drowned out. 'Why is it that all of them have been performing in Kamikakushi for as long as they could remember? It just surfaced at the beginning of this year.' Hiruko woke the next day to realise that Rushi had driven through the night and they were now at their destination. A sign saying, 'Welcome to Hanezakana' sailed past them and the secondary caravans, driven by Kage and Mino, pulled level beside theirs. Gin and Kin butted the window lightly, from inside the large storage van that Mino was driving, upon seeing Hiruko. Mino then pulled ahead and stopped at a large empty plain and opened the doors to the van. The performers in the main caravan exited once it had come to stop, Kin and Gin pouncing on Hiruko playfully. As Hiruko tumbled along the ground with the two animals, the others pulled out the tents. "Hiruko! Stop playing around and help us get the tent up!" Rushi called in a motherly fashion. The two animals got the message and got off of Hiruko, leaving the boy free to help set up the tent. By the time their struggling had paid off and the tent was standing upright, it was around noon. The troupe, Hiruko learned, took turns doing the chores an they rotated their duties. Rushi cooked lunch, a simple meal of curry and rice, before they went to set up their props and do light training. Hiruko was left panting by the time night fell, and they choked down a dinner of curry and rice again. Naruto watched as people streamed into the tent, Rushi ushering them in happily, her swallowtail coat accentuating her curves and the short skirt clinging at a low angle on her waist giving men a tease. The top hat on her head was slightly askew when she closed the drapes of the large tent, the large sheets of cloth flopping down with an air of finality. She marched to their section of the tent, which was not visible from the stands, and gave them a small pep talk. She walked out again, an air of confidence surrounding her and Hiruko heard her addressing the crowd.

Everything else passed in a blur as he watched from his vantage point, the acts cycling in fevered blurs of colour and wonderment. Yumi smiled at him as she went out, easily gaining everyone's favour with her cheery attitude and uncanny affinity for fire. He gasped with the crowd when she set herself on fire, before clapping and whooping as one with the audience when she not only wasn't burned alive, but also gathered the flames into the shape of the frame of a tennis raquet and contorted herself through it. When the act was over, Rushi made her way back into the ring and had the unpleasant job of quelling the crowd's thirst for an encore by the fire wielder. Hiruko thought she was going to end the show for the night when she finally got the audience to settle down. He became shell-shocked when he heard Rushi say from past the drapes, "Please put your hands together for our newest act. Our animal tamer will control a beast that no one has seen before, and manage to keep all his limbs by the end of the day. He may be our youngest performer, but he's in no way the worst." Yumi appeared from behind him and pushed him out into the open. A hush fell amongst the crowd, and he could guess why. Standing awkwardly clad in clothes that were too big for him borrowed from Yuki, he must have been giving off the impression he was originally meant to give off. A poor refugee. He looked nothing like a circus performer, clad in their quirky costumes splattered with about every single shade on the colour wheel. Just when he was about to be run over by the 'Panic Attack Express', the drapes billowed inwards fiercely and two hellish monsters materialised in the tent. They roared savagely at the audience and sent a few people scrambling away in fear. Children started crying as they gnashed their teeth, light whisking across their menacing points. "Kin-chan! Gin-chan!" Hiruko called, and the two animals turned towards the boy. They purred in delight and weaved their way through the apparatus left by Yumi previously, as if they were tame house cats rather than ferocious genetically engineered weapons.

Hiruko was at a loss for what to do after getting their attention, until Yumi burst from hiding, cracking a whip of flames in her hand. "You asked for an encore? You've got one!" Yumi shouted at the crowd. She rushed at Hiruko, her whip coming down on him. The attack never met. A large wing intercepted the whip, shielding the blond from the sparking material. The leathery appendage flapped outward, nearly catching Yumi in the stomach, but she flipped away with practised ease. A missile made solely of fire powered towards him and he threw himself to the floor, the heat streaking a line over his head. It curved in mid-air and headed back at him. Hiruko's fingers twitched as he fought against his instincts to stop himself from performing a suiton jutsu and blowing their cover sky high. A pair of wings batted it away and the projectile dissolved in a burst of orange. A loud rumbling was the only warning Hiruko was allowed before a motorcycle rushed at him, headlights blinding him. He grabbed onto Gin and whispered, "Could you go up, please?" The animal nodded and beat its powerful wings, shooting into the air and hovering a metre below the ceiling of the tent. A barrage of senbon shot upwards, out of their shadow, and a layer of flames wasted no time in flaring to life, coating the weapons. Hiruko grabbed a senbon, hissing in pain as the flames licked at his skin before finally dying out. He deflected the assault, and whipped his head around when he heard a growl and a crunch. The motorcycle from before had flown off a ramp and was probably headed towards him before Kin barelled into it mid-air and knocked it to the ground, ending its services as the impact coupled with the weight of the animal pinning it down took its toll. A blur of colour and a feeling of something impacting his side brought the blond from a slight daze. He was soon free falling through the air, Mari gazing apologetically as she swung, her legs gripped tightly by Ren. His fall was broken by something soft and warm. He got up and slid down Kin's back, thanking the animal. It growled in response.

Yumi trotted over to him and slapped him amicably on the back, "Thanks for not dying. If you did I'd be one friend less!" Hiruko looked around and noticed that the other performers who had attacked him had disappeared from sight. He sighed as Yumi forced him into a bow.

Suddenly, a man from the audience, decked out in ninja gear, stood up. A look of distaste was etched on his face that made it look even more twisted than before. "What the hell was that? Anyone could've fought like that with their summons. I don't see what's so special about those beasts anyway. They're probably just trained to act like this, and certainly not by you." The ninja pointed an accusing finger at Hiruko. Rushi emerged, "What's wrong?" Kino trailed behind her, a pair of knives in her hands, edges keen and waiting. "Those animals were probably pre-trained," the ninja sneered.

"This was an impromptu act by a recently joined member. It naturally wouldn't be as good as the others, but if you're still unhappy, would you be willing to provide an animal for him to train on the spot that most likely hasn't received our influence?" Rushi asked, a serene smile on her face. Hiruko opened his mouth to protest, but Rushi simply smiled and put a finger gently to her quirked lips. The ninja simply smirked, bit his thumb to draw blood, ran through a string of handseals, and slammed his palm on the floor. A large white tiger emerged and roared. It was just as big as the two unknown animals, and just as majestic. "This is my summon, Byakko. He's the boss summon of the white tigers," the Ninja boasted.

"White tigers? Sounds dorky," Yumi shrugged nonchalantly. The ninja ignored her and barked an order for the tiger to kill Hiruko.

"You'd better tame him, or he'll kill you," the ninja leered. The tiger sprang and soared through the air at Hiruko, before being knocked away by Kin. The two beasts sized each other up, moving in slow hypnotic circles, a dance of light and shadow.

"Byakko-san!" Hiruko shouted, fear causing his tone to waver slightly.

"What do you want, insignificant worm?" the tiger snapped, whirling around to face Hiruko, anger and annoyance sparking in his eyes. Kin took that opportunity to tense his leg muscles and prepared to pounce at Byakko like a missile.

"Kin, stop!" Hiruko ordered, seeing the powerful sinew coil like a spring. Kin grumbled in his indignance before relaxing slightly, though not completely in case his master needed a hundred pounds or so of flesh and muscle.

"Hurry up, brat! I don't have all day to sit around here and drink tea with you people," Byakko growled in distaste, lashing his tail to prove his point.

"Have you seen a small white tiger about this size?" Hiruko used his hands to gauge Shiro's size. It was a desperate attempt to find Shiro, but it was a potential lead to find his missing summon and friend. Kino winced slightly at this.

"Shiroko? He's currently grounded for staying away from home for two years!" the words exploded past Byakko's lips, fueled by anger. "And when he came home, he had a knife lodged in his stomach!" Kino winced again at this. "What's it to you anyways?" Byakko growled. By now, the crowd had gone quiet and appeared to be fascinated by the boy who was seemingly conversing with the summon, even though all they could hear were growls and grunts. The ninja seemed to be in quiet disbelief, as if he was seeing, but did not wanting to believe it.

"Shiro's alive. Thank God," Hiruko sighed. "When can he come back?" The tiger looked incredulous.

"He's grounded for life! He's not going anywhere. As the only heir to the clan, he can't go charging recklessly and then dying! How's in he supposed to lead when he's six feet under and pushing daisies?" Byakko snapped.

"He's your son," Hiruko said slowly. Byakko didn't deign to answer and merely snorted. "But he's also my friend."

Byakko growled at the last statement, "We work for whomever has the contract, and right now, it belongs to the douche over there. We don't need, and don't have, friends." The tiger's voice was harsh as before, but his tone seemed to have softened by a fraction. His face had gotten uncomfortably close to Hiruko's. The tiger sniffed, as if trying to place his scent; as if an answer was just on the tip of his tongue. His eyes widened and he used his teeth to rip the cloth away from the blond's neck, revealing the tattoo. "You're an anima," Byakko breathed. It was rhetorical and Hiruko didn't want to chance opening his mouth and adding his two cents. "Shiroko bit you," Byakko sighed. "I promised Minato that this wouldn't happen. Looks like I failed."Who's Minato?" Hiruko asked, a curious spark in his eyes.

Kino visibly stiffened and cut across them, "Okay, that's enough."

A fierce growl from Byakko made her back down, but she looked ready to butcher the tiger if he so much as scratched the blond. "Look, brat. I don't like my contractor, you don't like my contractor, and you want to see Shiroko again, so if you can just rough the guy up a little and get the contract scroll..." Byakko trailed off.

Hiruko's eyes sparkled, "Then Shiro can come home!"

"Gotta warn you though, Gaki. The guy's a ninja from Iwa, and with you looking like that, knowing him he's going to mistake you for Minato," Byakko growled before simply sitting down to watch with appraising eyes.

The man leered down at the blond, taking his fetures in for the first time. A growl ecaped the ninja's lips, "Kiiroi-senkou?"

'Hasn't' he considered that I might be too young? And I'm not as effeminate looking,' Hiruko pouted inwardly. Despite the mental pouting and mis-identification, mirth bubbled behind his impassive facade and he tried desperately to resist the urge to laugh, seeing the dumbstruck look on the Iwa nin's face.

He could've sworn he heard the tiger mutter, "Out of an entire nation with incredibly skilled fighters, I got the idiot who can't even tell the difference between a nine year old and a twenty-nine year old." At this, Hiruko could no longer hold in his chuckles, and it exploded from his lips in loud barks of laughter.

"Shut up! You slaughtered our nation's forces during the war and you have the gall to laugh?" the ninja shouted in fury.

The laughter ceased immediately and his face became devoid of all emotion. His eyes became a rich, but glazed gold. "Then take revenge," Hiruko taunted, a condescending smirk spreading slowly across his face. The ninja's face had became the exact shade of a beetroot in his anger, his body trembling. "Or are you going to remain a disgrace to your nation?" Hiruko watched him closely, his eyelids hanging deceptively low, giving him a sleepy look. The Iwa nin felt something snap in his mind and lunged at the blond, the only thought on his mind was to make the boy pay for insulting his competency. All he could hear was his blood roaring in his ears, intent on punching the blonde, when the boy sidestepped, a bored look on his face as the punch sailed harmlessly past his head. The ninja kept up with the assault, throwing wild punches and kicks like a drunken sailor in a brawl. The blond dodged each one with an ever present look of sheer boredom. He began to tire and his attacks became more sluggish. He gathered his chakra to fuel a fireball and released the attack on the blond. The boy dropped to the floor and swept the man's legs from under him, the fire attack passing harmlessly over his head. The Iwa nin landed with a thud on his back, and extracted a kunai from his weapons pouh a discreetly as he could. Hiruko positioned himself over the man, gazing impassively down at the man's figure. How had the guy made it into the shinobi forces in the first place? Steel glinted in the artificial lights above and he moved in time for a kunai to miss his heart by a long shot and graze his cheek. A look of annoyance passed over his face as tumultous shades of gold in his eyes caused the man to freeze out of fear involuntarily. A swift hit to the back of the man's neck and he pitched forward onto the floor. Hiruko stared awkwardly at the man's unconscious form, slightly disoriented as the crowd had gone eerily silent.

The silence was broken by the sound of an explosion and the ninja's body disappeared into a cloud of confetti. When the shimmering slivers flitted back to earth, the only one standing there was Rushi. She smiled warmly at the crowd, "We hope you enjoyed our final performane where one of our staff hid in the crowd to challenge our new member! It seems he did quite well, wouldn't you say?" Murmurs ran through the crowd. "He might be more of a fighter than an animal tamer, but he is an animal tamer nonetheless, able to tame these three beasts in a matter of minutes. That's a feat in and of itself!" Rushi gave a slight giggle. The crowd began to clap after an unsettling moment of hesitation, and acknowledged the odd animal tamer. "We hope you had an enjoyable time. Goodnight," Rushi said, and the rest of the cast materialised in the ring and bowed, Hiruko mimicking their actions a few seconds later.

* * *

><p>"What the hell were you thinking, taunting the man into engaging you in battle like that? This can't happen again, got it?" Rushi said sternly. Hiruko nodded, a confused look plastered across his face. "Well, what are we gonna do with him?" Yuki asked, gesturing to the form they were whispering over. The man was prone on the ground, still in lala land. Byakko padded up to the man's body and snuffled through the ninja's pouch, before returning with a scroll balanced daintily between his teeth. He jerked his head and release his hold, allowing it to sail neatly into Hiruko's waiting hands.<p>

"Go ahead and sign it. But don't summon me unless you have a giant fox on your tail that's wearing a frilly red dress and was nearly late to her own wedding," Byakko said.

"But that would never happen," Naruto said, turning the scroll over in his hands.

"Exactly," Byakko deadpanned.

"But why foxes?" Naruto tilted his head as if it would give him a clearer view of what was going on in the tiger's head.

"Because I don't like those nasty little buggers," Byakko growled, his fur standing on end, but his words had a light tone to it, as if he knew something that Hiruko didn't and was cracking an inside joke about it. He gave Kino a knowing look and she gazed at him warily. "FYI, that guy was a gennin. Don't ask me where he got the contract scroll from, probably took it off my previous contractor's dead body," the tiger turned and was about to leave when Hiruko called out.

"Why did you let him summon you? You said you didn't like him after all..." Hiruko trailed off.

"Maybe because I want the amusement of having an idiot in my life again," Byakko's lips twitching was the only indication of a smile.

"Then why don't you speak the human tongue. I know for a fact that all summons can," Naruto pressed on.

"Didn't feel like it," Byakko replied in fluent Japanese before he disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Hiruko blinked slowly and gave a non-commital shrug as if in resignation. The blond then sat down, slid open the scroll and stared blankly at the two names on the otherwise blank scroll. "How am I supposed to..." he gazed helplessly at Kino. The lady snapped out of her daze and directed the blond in signing the contract.

"It's late and we have another performance tomorrow, so why don't we all set aside this... stuff... to tomorrow and all have a good night's rest?" Rushi said. "You can try... calling up your animal tomorrow, but first, we should sleep." The performers didn't object to this and they all left for their respective tents, leaving Rushi with the unconscious man. She picked up the man's legs and dragged him off into the night, the quiet snuffling of clothes against the dirt accompanying her out of the campsite like a solemn hymn. -

* * *

><p>Hinata gazed up at the stars and wondered how Naruto was doing. He hadn't gone to school, and when she had asked Iruka-sensei about it, he simply deflected her question by talking about chewing gum. It was frustrating and perplexing that even the teacher was hiding his location. She was worried that she couldn't find him anywhere, even with her byakugan. It was as if he'd left the village or had been purposefully avoiding her. She sighed wistfully, fiddling with a bottle of pure black liquid. Naruto had handed it to her one day and told her that it was an antidote only to be used in a dire situation. She shook it gently and the liquid slapped against the sides, wanting out of the plastic bottle. She listened to the quiet sussurus of the sakura trees and thought of her mother. Despite the initial degrading of her health after he gave her the antidote about a month ago, her mother had sprung back in peak condition, and she could not thank him enough. She couldn't imagine her life without her mother. It also gave her faith in his and Kabuto's abilities in healing people. Clutching the bottle to her chest, she thought, 'Where did you go, Naruto?' She slowly drifted into a light sleep, lulled by the wind and watched over by the stars.<p>

* * *

><p>A figure kneeled before Orochimaru, a cloak obscuring his features. "Orochimaru-sama," the figure started, "I can assure you that no one suspects me or tailed me here. And I have nothing to report. "<p>

"And the boy you've taken an interest in?" Orochimaru asked, a sick smile on his face.

The figure tilted its head, eyes half-lidded and an amused smile on its lips, "Oh him? He's just a pretty little toy."

Orochimaru allowed himself a chuckle before dismissing the one before him, watching him melt into the shadows. His spy was ruthlessly efficient and merciless in killing if need be on top of being his best operative. It amazed him at times, that the person that just left could appear so kind and caring and yet kill people without even batting an eyelid. The thought sent a pleasant chill through him.

* * *

><p>Kino woke up to a splitting headache and massaged her temples in an attempt to quell it. She felt like someone was playing rock music full blast in her head. The day went on as usual, an unshakeable nagging in the back of her mind telling her that she'd forgotten something. Her fingers worked deftly as she tossed ingredients about and exhaled a steady jet of flames. A pot of spaghetti seafood marinara lay before her when she was finally done. The smell wafted around her like a heavenly shroud when she brought it out to the performers. It honestly didn't cost as much as she thought it would when she bought in bulk. She doled out equal portions to the performers and said grace before eating. She had volunteered herself to be chef and would help out with any other odds and ends. The days flew by and they had moved from Hazekana to another place, never once wondering about what happened to the Iwa nin whose body had mysteriously disappeared the next day. Hiruko loved circus life and between training his butt off and performing, he nearly forgot about his real purpose in the circus. Today, they were performing for the last day just outside a town that sold textiles, and Kino had just emerged from the kitchen in under five minutes with their dinner. The smell of tomato paste, a sprinkling of pepper and vinegar hit him. He was prctically drooling by the time he had a plate of it in his hands and he choked it down eagerly before asking for another helping. Kino's cooking skills were, he decided, unrivaled except for Teuchi and Ayame, the two ramen chefs.<p>

When the remains of dinner were finally cleared away, he left for the forest nearby after calling Kin and Gin to follow him, a bow and a quiver of arrows he'd borrowed from Daisuke in hand. He didn't remember where he'd learned to use the weapon, but there wasn't any other sharp pointy stuff around and the long ranged weapon just felt right in his hands. He notched an arrow and immediately felt at ease among the deep silence of the forest. Gnarled branches interlocked together in a tangled dance of mystery as sounds echoed around him in the vast carpet of vegetation. The two large animals that padded beside him gave him an odd sense of security and belonging, as if he were one of them. A shift in the winds, and he caught the scent of a wayward doe. Kin left to hunt it, while Gin padded off soundlessly to stalk a much larger stag. Frantic squeals off to the left told him that Kin had made the kill and a loud snorting from somewhere ahead of him signalled that Gin had gotten her prey too. He walked forward carefully, his feet landing as soundlessly as Kin and Gin's, and a flash of light brown fur caught his eye. He whipped around, arrow straining to be released, but relaxed when four slender legs, a small muzzle and large, soft brown eyes. It was a baby deer. He realised, with a detached fascination, that the body Gin was devouring, had most likely been the father. "I'm sorry, little one," he said, reaching out to touch it. It shyed away and skittered unsteadily on its legs. He left his hand outstretched and waited. The deer sniffed his hand and butted it lightly. Hiruko moved to pat it on the head but it moved away once more. He stayed still and the deer slowly came up to him, unsure, and rubbed its head against his hand. It sniffed his hand again and nuzzled it eagerly, curling around his hand. The blond decided that it was a good time to move and gently brushed the top of its head, feeling a slight shiver go through its small body. There was just something about the blond that calmed animals, in general, down. Even Hiruko himself didn't understand why or how. Kin and Gin then chose that moment to amble over, fur slightly bloody. The deer started and ran a few feet away, moving expertly through the trees until a tree gave it a glancing blow. "Kin, Gin, go back first. I'll meet you back at the tent," instructed Hiruko, keeping his eyes on the deer. The two animals left, both speculating what Hiruko would do with the baby deer. Once they were gone, the blond immediately raised his bow and fired an arrow in the deer's direction. It sliced through the air and landed with a vicious thump, striking his target in the skull. Liquid ruby flowed down the animal's head wound and dripped omniously onto the floor. The blond approached the carcass and removed the arrow, casually wiping the sharp tip on the grass, staining the green with a smear of red. He picked the snake up and hurled its dead body to the top of the tree where it disappeared through the thick drape of leaves. The blond turned to the deer and slowly patted it on the head before scooping it in his arms and carrying it back to the tents.

"Why is it that you keep picking up strays?" Kino sighed, wishing that the blond wasn't such an animal magnet.

"So can I keep it?" Hiruko asked, pulling out the puppy eyes, his large blue eyes making it difficult to resist the underhanded attack.

"Yes, you may if Kin and Gin don't eat it first," Kino mumbled.

"Yatta!" Hiruko squeezed the deer lightly. "Then you won't have to be alone," he whispered to the animal.

Yuki then popped his head past the drapes of the tent and called, "Hiruko, Yumi and I need your help with something." Kino nodded in the ebony haired boy's direction, as I saying, 'Go ahead'. Hiruko set the deer down and left, leaving Kino to engage the deer in an awkward staring match.

"So, what is it that you needed my help with?" Naruto asked, looking aroun at the equipment scattered across the tent. A pair of hands covered his eyes.

"Yuki and I decided to get you something!" Yumi's voice squealed. She removed her hands and he saw before him the frilliest dress on earth. The entire thing was literally made of frills and laces with a teeny tiny waist. A corset was set beside it and the laces looked like they would squeeze the bejeezus out of his waist. He wouldn't be surprised if his guts came out of his mouth if he were to even attempt putting it on. "It's for you to wear during your act! Do you like it?" Yumi giggled. Hiruko couldn't stop the look of dread spread across his face. Yuki laughed so hard that tears came to his eyes. Yumi then shoved the dress aside and turned him around. A set of clothes was laid out neatly on the dresser, and Yumi bundled him towards it, urging him to put it on. After much fussing, he finally managed to struggle into the clothes of foreign design. They were surprisingly light and easy to move around in, considering the design. Yumi manhandled the blond towards a full length mirror so that he could actually see what he was wearing. He had, apparently, donned an odd combination of a black sleeveless shirt with silver lining and a pair of black pants, the ends stuffed into matching white boots cutting off just below his knees and held together in a bow with brown laces, the tips encased in a silvery material that felt cool to the touch. He wore a long sleeved coat that stopped just below his knees. It was a deep red that immediately reminded him of fresh blood, with embroidered black and white diamond motifs alternating down in a perfect line on each sleeve which ended in white upturned cuffs just covering his hands, which were clad in pure white gloves. A flap, framed in white with additional red and black diamond motifs sewn inside the boundary, extended from the right side to be secured on the left by stark yellow buttons. The flap stopped just below his stomach, exposing the lower most part of his shirt. The coat was tight around his waist, giving him the odd feeling that it might have originally been meant for female animal tamers. The blond's eyes gyrated to the hem, which was drenched in a foreboding shadow of black, the dark flames licking upwards from the hem into another set of flames, this time an unimpeded white. It was as if the black flames were a shadow of its whiter, purer, counterpart. He finally looked like a circus performer rather than a hobo (no offence). A lilting female voice jolted him out of his thoughts, "So do you like it?" Hiruko turned to see Yumi smiling behind him, her hands resting playfully on his shoulders and her head peeking over them.

"It's amazing! I don't know what to say," Hiruko looked about ready to cry with gratitude.

"How about a thank you," Yuki prompted.

"Thank you," the blond parroted.

"We found it in this shop in the village just a ways from here. The guy said that the coat had a curse on it, but I think he was just trying to scare us. The only thing that's 'cursed' about that coat is the seal on the base of the collar that allows it to grow as you do," Yumi laughed, her voice light and calming.

"Curse or not, I love it. Thank you," Hiruko strained not to let his voice crack.

"Then you'd better repay us by performing better than you've ever done before!" Yuki slapped him on the back amicably.

* * *

><p>After the show, Hiruko sat on the grass with Gin and Kin curled up beside him, trying to remember if he ever had a life before joining Kamikakushi. A soft breeze created a soft murmur in the blades of grass as his hair danced on the wind. He could still hear the chatter and footsteps of the audience they had just entertained. He felt a sense of peace as he sat on the soft grass, when steady crunches made their way towards him. He jolted upwards, the hem of his coat fanning out around him. A mother was leading her son along saying, "Hinata-kun you..." Hiruko's brain didn't register anything after that. He felt something tugging at his heart, something vying to be remembered. 'Hinata' was, apparently, something important to him. Memories of hanging out with the circus flitted past his memory, but none of them was named, 'Hinata'. A certain memory flitted past him, but drained away as if someone had pulled the stopper in a bathtub, leaving him with an uncomfortable empty feeling. 'Hinata, Hinata, Hinata,' the name circulated through his mind like a broken tape record and refused to stop no matter how hard he tried to block out the incessant chanting of his mind. He gave up on stargazing and headed for his tent, collapsing face first onto the floor. Something furry brushed up against his hand and he looked up to see the baby deer. "It's a litte late, but I think I'll call you Hinata," he said, unable to think of anything else with the single name inundating his exhausted brain. He pulled himself up reluctantly and fell into his hammock, refusing to do anything but sleep, a faceless entity called Hinata plaguing his dreams, not with terror, but with an out of place soothing calm. A tuneless lullaby for what he had forgotten and left behind.<p>

**A/N: Firstly, I'm not from a circus or performing group so if whomever is reading this is, please give me some pointers. I would really appreciate it. Next, guess who's spying for Orochimaru! Hmm... Honestly, it's so freaking obvious. Never mind. Can't stop listening to Payphone! Random. Okay... Please review to help me improve. I thank you in advance. And in case anyone is wondering where the circus idea came from, it's from the Vocaloid song, 'Dark woods Circus'. Vocaloid FTW!1! XD I know I said it before, but please REVIEW! Luv you guys! Now going to correct the rest of my chapters... Xp**


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Hello again. Sorry about the not-hiatus hiatus. I was studying for mid-term exams. I promise a longer chapter when I next update. (Though maybe you wouldn't like a longer chapter… Hmm… No seriously. My friend tells me that they're too long)**

_Chapter 11: Meeting_

A hand hovered over him and was about to make contact with his body when he caught it and bent it back in an unnatural angle, sleep still hazing his eyes. "Wuh?" Hiruko half mumbled half slurred at the piercing shriek of pain, before it was stifled. "Hiruko... Please... Let go," he heard a trembling voice plead. It immediately clicked in his head and he let go like he'd been burned. Yuki stood at the side of his hammock, cradling his hurt hand in his other, uninjured one, tears at the brink of falling.

He let out a strangled whimper of pain as Yumi stood at his side and softly fussed over her twin. The problem was that she let loose bursts of flames when she was worried, so it was no surprise when a lick of flame danced across the boy's arm, doing more harm than good. Yumi stepped back and lifted her hands off her brother, sparks literally flying from her fingertips.

Hiruko, on the other hand, was horrified. He'd just hurt a family member. Sure, they weren't related by blood, but everyone in the troupe was family and no one was left behind. Hurting each other was taboo. He'd acted out of instinct. Something someone... Ka... Ka... Well, it was something someone had instilled in him, ambushing him - anytime and anywhere and even in his sleep - over the years he'd been with that somebody. That didn't make sense, though. He had been in the circus his entire life. Besides, his mother was always the one to wake him, and she could handle the random, sleep-fogged attacks when she attempted to do so. Wake him, that is.

Hiruko hopped off his hammock and his feet touched the ground soundlessly. He lay a gentle hand on Yuki's wrist and diagnosed that he'd managed to snap it somehow with his sleep-fu. A warm green glow enveloped his hand and he laid it on Yuki's broken wrist, the ebony haired boy gasping as a warm, numbing feeling flooded his wrist, driving the near-unbearable pain away. The twins watched in fascination as Hiruko's brow creased in concentration, sweat beading near his hairline and sliding down across his temple. When Hiruko pulled his hand away, he stared at the appendage in fascination, as if not believing that it was actually attached to his body. "It's healed. How... How did you do that, Hiruko?" asked Yuki, his voice shaky as he gingerly tested his wrist for any sign of its former injuries.

Shock had registered on his face when he realised that his wrist was completely healed. Even the slight scorch mark Yumi had given him on his forearm had vanished without a trace. Not even a scar. Hiruko just stared at his hands with wide, slightly fearful eyes. "I... I don't know," the blond continued to stare at his hands in awe even after he found his voice. The three just stood in silence as they took in what had just happened. Even Yumi the Motor mouth was lost for words, and that normally happened when humans started being able to fly. Perhaps a certain perverted author doing research was sailing through the air right this very moment. Perverts. Somehow, everything's their fault. (No offence to perverts. I'm okay with them. After all, my sis is one.)

The tent flap swung inwards and Rushi strode in, dressed in her performance clothes. It was only then that Hiruko realised that Yuki and Yumi were in their costumes too. "Why are you three taking so long? We have to prepare for the raid," Rushi asked. This puzzled Hiruko. What on Earth was this raid supposed to be about? "What's a raid?" Hiruko asked, tilting his head to the side ever so slightly. "Yuki, Yumi. I asked you to explain to him," Rushi berated the twins sternly, both of whom hung their heads as if in guilt. The ringleader turned back to Hiruko, "A raid is a rite of passage in our troupe. We sneak out into the village and bring one person each to our master as proof of our loyalty and abilities."

Hiruko was about to open his mouth to object when he felt a strong sense of obligation wash over him. It was an obligation to obey Rushi without question, or rather the obligation to join them on their 'raid'. As if he'd done this all his life. Waking up in the middle of the night, going in a raid and handing the body to their master. It was intoxicating and he wanted the feeling to last forever. He was only subconsciously aware of his body ripping off his pyjamas, zipping up his shirt, slipping on his pants and throwing on his coat. The hem fluttered around his knees menacingly, the flames dancing around like a faithful guard dog. He was floating on a cloud and nothing in reality could touch him. It felt one step above heavenly as he pulled his boots on and laced them up, his fingers working deftly around the laces to pull them into a tight bow.

The four of them exited the tent to see the other members of the circus standing in a small group outside, all decked out in their costumes. They swept down the dirt path towards the village, Kino being left behind. The purple haired interrogator huffed in amusement and slinked off quietly, trailing the group in the shadows. The blank looks on the faces of the troupe members not going unnoticed to her. Hiruko padded swiftly through a tiny apartment, his feet moving silently and quickly across the boarded floors. His ears perked and caught the sound of slow, steady breathing. Turning and striding soundlessly across the floor, he inched open the door to the source of the sound.

A man was sprawled across the bed, saliva building at the corner of his mouth and forming a small viscous pool below it. Pieces of paper were strewn across a desk that was shoved against a wall. An opened ink bottle and a brush lay on the table, midnight fluid dripping off the jet black bristles. The blond picked the brush up and took careful, measured steps over to the man. His hand worked swiftly, imprinting a silencing seal across the skin of the man's throat. He sent a burst of chakra through it, bringing it to life. The heavy breathing was now muted, even to his ears. He picked the man up and effortlessly threw him over his shoulders. The man was incredibly light. Malnutrition, Hiruko guessed, glancing at the half-eaten can of baked beans on his desk. He launched himself out of the window and onto the roof.

Kino watched from the subtle shadows of an alley as the troupe met in the centre of the village. The troupe members all had captives with them, ranging from a child to an old lady and anything in between. All of them alive and struggling against their bonds or screaming into their gags, all save for the one slung across Hiruko's shoulder. The man's eyes were wide open in shock, bulging from their sockets, and his mouth was open in a silent scream. His chest heaved up and down rapidly. Hyperventilating, perhaps. His mouth closed and his eyes darted around wildly as he squirmed desperately in Hiruko's iron grip. Vibrant black lines stood out against the pallor of the captive's skin, blanched white through fear and desperation. Silencing seal.

The group then disappeared in a swirl of leaves. "Shit," Kino cursed under her breath. She ran to the spot the group had vacated and cursed again. She whipped her head around in vain, scanning the area though she knew they were long gone. 'You said there'd be no ninjas, Sandaime. Then what the hell is this?" Kino ranted in her head, using her creative juices to picture herself strangling the old man in frustration. She turned and headed back to the camp. She'd have to ask Hiruko later.

Her mind stewed with the thought of Hiruko meeting an enemy too powerful for him to fight and end up dead. The thought kept her up all night, a constant nagging at the back of her mind, harbouring the possibility that Hiruko would not return. 'Naruto, if you don't make it back alive I am going to personally go to the afterlife and kick your ass. And then I'll drag you back with me.' She didn't get a wink of sleep that night.

* * *

><p>The troupe kneeled before their master, who greeted them with a slick, "I see you have a new member."<p>

Rushi bowed her head and the others had followed suit.

"Come here, boy," the man beckoned. Hiruko raised his head and an amused look crept across the man's face. "Welcome to Kamikakushi," he grinned.

"Dispatch me as you please, master," Hiruko bowed reverently. The man looked even more amused and tilted the boy's head using his finger for closer inspection.

"Cute, aren't you?" he said, his finger still under the boy's chin.

Hiruko gazed blankly into the man's eyes and the finger on his chin retracted. Hiruko glanced over at the other troupe members, all of whom were still on bended knee. A sliver of black stood out against their skin, orange hues dancing across them in the pale light of the candle flames. Seals that took away memories from those that had contact with it as well as their loved ones. Another seal was overlaid each if the seals, though he couldn't identify them.

'How do I know this? I... I've been in Kamikakushi all my life, haven't I?' Hiruko shook his head to relieve it of those thoughts. They were dismissed, and the ones they'd captured were left with their master. Hiruko never spared a second thought about them. He collapsed in his hammock and instantly spiralled into a void of sleep.

* * *

><p>Hinata was scared. Everyone she had spoken to didn't know who Naruto was. Even Iruka-sensei had acted like he didn't know him. 'W-what's going on? I-is everyone playing a prank on me?' Hinata wondered, fear starting to creep its way into her thoughts. The new school year was starting soon, and Naruto was still missing. 'Where did you go, Naruto?' Hinata thought, depressed, as she sat on a park bench thinking about Naruto's disappearance. A wind blew through the park and she relished the cool caressing of the wind, like Naruto's touch. Gentle, yet strong and cool to the touch.<p>

A tear slid down her cheek and a sheet of paper slapped onto her face as it carried on the wind, stopping its fluttery progression through Konoha. She peeled it off her face and read the headline. It was a flyer for a circus called Kamikakushi that would be performing in the forest around Konoha that night. Directions were printed in red at the bottom of the flyer. 'One ticket per flyer' was etched in small print at the far bottom left corner and her eyes scanned through the introduction.

'Animal tamer' was circled in red with scrawled words in longhand stretching from below it. The words were unreadable to her, but it certainly seemed like someone was very keen about seeing the animal tamer. She pocketed the flyer and resolved to sneak out at night to watch the circus. A nervous sense of elation ran through her. This would be the second time sneaking out of the mansion at night, and it was just as exciting as it was before.

* * *

><p>"Konoha? We're going to be performing in Konoha?" Hiruko asked. "Is there a problem?" Rushi asked. "No. The name just seems familiar somehow. Konoha... Konoha... The image of a tower flashed in his mind, as well as a girl with pale eyes. 'Hina-ta?' he wondered, before the image vanished. He opened his eyes. He hadn't realised he'd shut them. Rushi was staring at him with a concerned expression on her visage from her position behind the wheel. "Are you okay? You seemed really erm... lost in thought..." she said. "Yeah, I'm fine," Hiruko said, sighing as he thought about 'Hinata'.<p>

He sat back down on the floor of the caravan as Rushi drove on, feeling the hum of the vehicle beneath him. He felt an odd sense of anticipation swell in his chest. He couldn't wait to see Konoha again. 'Again? But I've never been there before. I'm going crazy,' Hiruko rapped his forehead with the heel of his palm and shook his head to clear the cobwebs. 'Why's everything so… hazy?'

Hiruko lay his head on his mother's lap and fell between the realm of sleeping and wakefulness, the guttural purr of the engine lulling him into a hazy dream. A soft warm body pressed itself against him and he draped his arm around it. The baby deer blinked at his touch and snuggled closer before falling asleep as well. A peaceful silence fell over the occupants of the caravan as they journeyed towards Konoha.

* * *

><p>Iruka was perplexed. Hinata constantly asked him about someone named Naruto. As far as he knew there was no such person. Something struggled to break free from the confines of his mind. Memories. The only thing the name brought up was a small blond boy, which should have been odd seeing as it should have unearthed images of maelstroms or fishcake or ramen, but it felt perfectly normal. Speaking of ramen… wasn't there a student in his class who loved the food? He had never seen any of them eating any though, so the boy might have been from another class.<p>

He rounded the corner on the street and spotted a shop. "Ichiraku… Ramen?" Iruka mumbled. The image of the blond boy appeared in his head again and his stomach chose that moment to growl like the Sasquatch. 'And on today's lunch menu, ramen,' Iruka sighed inwardly as he made a beeline for the stand, willing his stomach to shut up at the same time.

* * *

><p>It was after lunch break. Hinata stared anxiously at the clock, her pencil twitching between her fingers as she rotated it to work off the adrenaline. Something flew into her, glomping her from the seat behind. "What's got you so twitchy, Hinata?" a voice called out from by her ear.<p>

"Naruto?" she exclaimed.

"Nah, sorry. It's just me, Kiba. But have you seen Naruto anywhere? I keep asking where he is and everyone keeps saying something like, 'Who?' and giving me the dopey face," Kiba frowned in annoyance.

"N-No… I-I w-was g-g-going t-to a-ask y-you t-the s-same th-thing," Hinata stumbled over her words.

"Hey, what'cha got there?" Kiba ripped the flyer from its place between the pages of her book.

"K-Kiba. G-Give th-that b-back," Hinata stuttered.

"Sorry," Kiba handed her back the flyer. "But I've got one too. Just without the markings. You must really wanna see that animal tamer huh?"

"I-It w-was th-there wh-when I-I f-found i-it,"

"Huh. Person must really love cats then. I heard the animal tamer only works with cats. Kinda like Naruto, but that's stupid. Right, Hinata?" Kiba laughed.

"I-I d-don't kn-know. M-Maybe…"

"Look, let's go together. You look like you're gonna go crazy, worrying about him. Try to take your mind off him for a while. This is Naruto we're talking about. He'll come back no matter what. He's the guy who's harder to kill than an immortal bastard (inside joke. So sorry = [ )," Kiba grinned.

"O-Okay," Hinata said, attempting a weak smile.

"Hinata! Kiba! Stop talking in class!" Iruka yelled.

Kiba crashed back into his seat and grinned broadly, "Sorry, sensei."

Iruka nodded and turned back to the board, only to be sprayed with a jet of water from a seal on the blackboard. The class roared with laughter and Hinata couldn't help but join in, feeling her spirits lift. She turned around to see Kiba grinning triumphantly and hide an ink brush in his bag.

* * *

><p>Night couldn't have fallen sooner. There was so much to do before the show that night, and it seemed like time had a personal vendetta against them. They barely made it in time to choke down a plate of aglio olio courtesy of Kino. They hastily donned their costumes and Rushi ran to the entrance of the tent to receive the visitors. Hiruko poked his head around the flap to see that the tent was packed. The baby deer skittered at his feet as if he were its mother.<p>

Hiruko reached down to pat its head when another two heads joined his around the tent flap. "Hey Yumi, Yuki," Hiruko greeted them.

"Mino's incredible isn't he? He got the crowd laughing the moment he appeared," Yumi said.

"Yeah…" Hiruko drifted off. His attention was focused on a pale eyed girl in the crowd and the feral looking boy next to her. They looked so familiar. 'Hinata… Kiba?' his mind supplied those two names. 'Are… are those… their names? I can't be sure. It's probably nothing,' the blond reassured himself.

"H-Hey K-Kiba, I-I t-think th-the s-seats o-over th-there a-are e-empty," the pale-eyed girl said, waving the feral boy over.

"Ok, Hinata," the feral boy shouted back over the crowd.

"That's not possible," gasped Hiruko after hearing their conversation.

"What's not possible, Hiruko-chan?" Yumi asked.

"It's nothing," Hiruko dismissed her question and fiddled nervously with the cuff of his coat sleeve. 'How did I know their names? I've never seen them before. I AM going crazy.'

Hiruko sat on a prop and distracted himself with the hem of his coat, running his fingers over the black and white flames trekking their way up the coat. It was an exquisite coat and he felt drawn in by it. The flames seemed to come to life and dance across the coat before his very eyes. He tore his eyes away from the hypnotic progression of the flames and in turn began to fiddle with the laces of his boots. He turned the metal encased tip in his fingers and felt two grooves.

He flicked it casually and nearly ripped a finger out getting his hand away from the tip. Two diminutive blades had whipped out from their roosts in the grooves and connected at the tip, their edges keen and laced with poison. 'Most likely from Chironex Fleckeri… Box jellyfish.' "How did I know that?" he wondered out loud, but he'd stopped trying to make sense of these random flashes of information. He flicked it again and the blades returned to their positions, ready to flash out, stab, poison and kill.

"Hiruko, it's your act," a voice broke through his reverie and stopped his thoughts in their tracks.

* * *

><p>Hinata stared in disbelief as a familiar blond strode into view. He looked exactly the same, except for the clothes he wore. She was about to shout down to him when a thought stopped her. What if this was all an illusion. What if she embarrassed herself by shouting, especially with all the people around her? Just then, two monstrous beings burst through the tent flaps. She screamed and so did a lot of people. The blond at the centre walked up to them as they snarled and gnashed their teeth. They calmed as he approached, and he leapt onto one of them.<p>

Hinata was awed by the display as the blond did acrobatics mid-air between the two cat-like creatures. She could've sworn he spoke to them a few times during the act. 'He's definitely Naruto,' she thought to herself. She felt an elbow in her side and turned to Kiba. "That's Naruto. No mistake," he said. She nodded.

* * *

><p>Hiruko flipped in the air and his body rushed to meet the ground, head first. Gin was rushing beneath him to catch him when he noticed a small brown form tottering over to his position. His eyes widened when he realised that it was the baby deer. Gin was right in collision course with it and could accidentally crush it. His hands flew out as he neared the ground and his arms absorbed the impact. His legs latched onto Gin's muzzle and he swiped the deer into his arms, its legs flailing in protest. He brought his body up to stare above Gin's head and his eyes locked with pale ones.<p>

"Sorry. Gin," he mumbled. The animal grunted in consent as he braced his hand against the animal's muzzle and did a one handed handstand. The deer scrambled up his body and rested on his legs, which were bent horizontally over his head. "Already the performer, aren't you," he chuckled. Yumi appeared in his peripheral vision and grinned maliciously. She held aloft a bucket of water and gave no warning before chucking it at him.

He launched the deer into the air, used Gin's muzzle as a pivot and slid under the animal's body, arriving at the end in time to catch the deer. "Aww… You're no fun," Yumi pouted. Hiruko simply bowed to the crowd.

"Well, I know this is cliché, but, break a leg. Just don't actually break one," Hiruko grinned.

"Thanks," Yumi slapped his back amicably.

* * *

><p>Hinata simply stared at the girl. It was the last act and she was looking but not seeing. Who was that girl and why was Naruto acting as if they knew each other? Before she knew it, the act was over. The show was over, and they were filing out of the tent. "K-Kiba…" Hinata began.<p>

"I know," the boy interrupted. "That was, without a doubt, Naruto."

"S-So… h-how d-do w-we g-get t-to h-him?" Hinata asked.

Kiba pondered for a while before planting his fist in his palm and saying, "I know. We'll sneak in and find him."

"Th-that's r-really d-dangerous, K-Kiba."

"Who cares? We're ninjas right? Let's go save Naruto." Kiba grabbed Hinata's arm and dragged her off towards the tent before she could protest.

They were hit by pitch darkness and it took their eyes a while to adjust. Footsteps assaulted their ears and they scrambled behind a cage. Heavy breathing accompanied the footsteps as well as a soft growl. They turned their heads to face two round golden eyes, not inside the cage. Hinata opened her mouth to scream but Kiba clapped a hand over her mouth. He lifted a finger to his lips and she nodded, tears streaming down her cheeks. The footsteps receded and they slowly backed away. The creature made no move to follow them and simply snorted before laying its head on its paws.

The two heaved a sigh of relief and took calming breaths before making their way to a room full of props and saw the girl from before turning pieces of scrap paper into beautiful origami sculptures. She picked a piece of metal up and it morphed into a blade in her hands. It left her hands and embedded itself in the wall near their heads. They drew back, breathing heavily at the close call. "OhmyGodohmyGodohmyGod," Kiba whispered. "Think she saw us?"

"No, but if you don't identify yourselves I will finish what she couldn't complete," a voice whispered near their ears, teasing and playful. Cold steel touched the skin above their jugulars and they froze.

"Inuzuka Kiba," Kiba ground out.

"H-Hyuuga H-Hinata," choked Hinata, her voice barely audible.

"Hinata?" the voice whispered, and the blades clattered to the floor.

They turned around to see the animal tamer, two kunai at his feet, forgotten.

"N-Naruto?" Hinata took a step closer.

"Excuse me but, do I know you?" the blond instinctively retreated a step back, confusion written all over his face. The words were like knives to her heart.

"I-It's m-me, H-Hinata. D-Don't y-you r-remember m-me?"

**A/N: Ok. That's about it. I'm so sorry it's so short. Can someone also correct me about the Chironex Fleckeri thing? I'm really not sure if it's correct or wrong or… you get the point. Well, Singapore celebrated her 47th birthday 2 days ago. I know it's a little late, but HAPPY BIRTHDAY SINGAPORE! XD Oh, and I want to do a little poll. What animal should Kushina's anima be? **

**1)Wolf**

**2)Panther**

**3)Hummingbird**

**4)Lion**

**5)Dingo**

**6)Kangaroo (got kicked by one before. Damn, they're nasty when protecting their young. xp)**

**7)Alligator**

**8)Bull **

**9)Hedgehog**

**10)Other**

**Please either PM me the number for what you think should be her animal or put it in a review. And if you chose 'Other' please specify what animal. Thanks! HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY SINGAPORE! And happy very very belated birthday Yu-chan. You know who you are. :3 (P.S. pls dun kill me. I noe ur nails r rly sharp n I dun wanna b on e receiving end.)**


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